The Dragon and the Prince
by Dreamer of Legends
Summary: What was meant to be nothing more than a playful game has apparently taken on a more serious inflection in the eyes of our Pharaoh.
1. Just a Game?

The Dragon and the Prince

"...And when the mighty and brave warrior finally discovered the hideout of the rich, stuck-up prince, he charged in and blasted the snobby jerk right back to the minor leagues where he belonged!" Joey finished enthusiastically, punching his fist into his open palm.

"The 'minor leagues'?" Tea echoed, laughing at the absurd ending to his story. "Since when did the medieval times have a minor leagues?"

"Since Joey decided he couldn't beat Kaiba -excuse me-, the 'snobby prince' at Duel Monsters." Tristan commented dryly, reaching for the snack bowl. "He needed a new time period to kick his butt in."

"Well you've gotta admit, it was a sweet ending anyway." Joey said, with a self-satisfied smirk on his face. Then his look abruptly soured.

"And I could so beat Kaiba." He protested. "I'm just lettin' him bask in the glory for a while."

"Yeah, sure." Tristan mumbled through a mouthful of popcorn. Joey reached over and tipped the bowl into his lap with his toe.

"Hey!" Tristan gasped, horrified at the sight of spilled food. He scrambled to get the contents back into the bowl, mumbling something about a 'ten-second' rule.

"Well, I think we've heard from everyone." Yugi uncrossed his legs and leaned back on his hands to keep them from falling asleep. "What do you guys want to do now? Watch a movie?"

"Lets do a role-play!" Tea exclaimed excitedly. "We could even put together our own theater!"

"Oooh, good idea." They agreed, leaning in to pool their ideas, voices lowered to hushed whispers; their attitudes suddenly shifting to secretive and plotting.

****

A few minutes later they were scattered around the house, taking their positions for their game.

"O my daughter," cried Yugi in his best 'king' voice. "I fear greatly for the fate of this kingdom. For behold, the great dragon stirreth from his perch of fire on high."

He gestured to the mound of pillows that had been piled high next to the couch. Taking his cue, Tristan ruffled a few of the pillows and growled menacingly.

"Fear not, father." Tea soothed. "I am sure that the rumblings of the mountain do not foretell any danger."

She started toward the pile, exaggerating her movements, and Tristan tensed.

"See? There is no danger here!" She called, and Yugi's face blanched.

"No princess, do not stray too close!" But it was too late. Tristan exploded out of the pile, sending pillows flying everywhere.

"Rooaaargh!" He roared, lunging and tossing Tea over his shoulder with ease.

"You are coming with me, your majesty!" He laughed.

"Help! Help!" Tea cried, trying hard not to laugh from atop her perch as Tristan swung around and pointed a finger menacingly at Yugi.

"I want your entire fortune in exchange for your daughter's safe return. A treasure for a treasure!" he cackled.

"Oh no!" Yugi cried. "Not my daughter! Please great beast, spare her!" But Tristan only laughed again.

"Bring my gold to the base of my mountain before the dawn of the morrow. Should you fail, I will devour her!"

And with that, he turned away, speeding off to his 'lair'. He dumped Tea unceremoniously onto the couch and 'chained' her down with a can of silly string.

"Help!" Tea called once more, before the foamy stuff completely covered her and she could hold back her laughter no longer.

"Cut it out!" She spluttered. "I'm a princess, I'm not strong enough to break a solid chain!"

Tristan squirted her once more for good measure, and then sat himself down on the armrest with a dark scowl. He looked every bit the part of a dragon guarding its prize.

"What shall I do?" Yugi lamented. "My beloved daughter has been taken. Yea, the kingdom's royal bloodline is doomed!"

"Have no fear!" Joey called out in return, jumping out of the closet and brandishing a rolled up newspaper. "I shall rescue the princess from the maw of that devilish serpent."

He struck an impressive pose, which would have been even more impressive if not for the overturned soup pot he was using as a helmet. Yugi took one look at him, blinked, blinked again, and then doubled over laughing.

Joey gasped and rushed over to his side. "Verily, the king hath been stricken with grief at the disappearance of... aww shut up!" He cut himself off, glaring at Yugi. "It doesn't look that bad." Yet he was unable to bite back his own laugh at the sight of his friend giggling like that. Yugi just laughed harder, clutching at his sides and collapsing to the floor.

Joey quickly slipped back into character.

"Yea, I must rescue the fair maiden, or it will mean the death of the kingdom."

And he turned and charged at Tristan.

"Taste steel, foul worm!"

He thumped the Dragon over the head solidly, jerking him forward a bit. Tristan took the blow without complaint, and looked up with a gleam in his eyes that wiped the smile off Joey's face in a wink.

Suddenly, he whipped his hand around in front of his face and squeezed the trigger. Joey caught a face full of silly string, and he jerked back with a startled cry.

"Taste my breath foolish knight, and die!" He lunged, but Joey brought the newspaper around to poke him in the stomach, though he could hardly see. Tristan gave an overly loud gasp, clutching at the newspaper. He jerked it out of Joey's grasp as he went stumbling away, pretending that the 'sword' was firmly lodged in his gut. He sank to the floor slowly, dramatically.

"Oh just die already." Tea groaned.

"Blaaah…" Tristan sighed in response, collapsing to the floor with his tongue hanging out of his mouth and the biggest smile on his face.

Yugi walked over and clapped his hands, apparently recovered from his fit of amusement.

"Well done brave warrior, you shall be rewarded immensely for your endeavors. Name your desire, and if it be within my power I shall grant it."

"How 'bout some food?" Joey asked, suddenly himself again. Tristan jumped up eagerly.

"Yeah, kidnapping the princess is hard work!"

Yugi laughed just as a delicious smell wafted under their noses.

"I think the pizza is here!" He said, and they all made a mad scramble for the kitchen, stomachs rumbling eagerly.

****

They tore into the food with a vengeance, getting burned more than once, but they were too hungry to bother waiting for it to cool. Grandpa watched with wide eyes.

"If I had waited any longer to get these, you four would have been eating the furniture!" he exclaimed with an astonished shake of his head.

Everyone laughed, but only Tea had the presence of mind to cover her mouth. Joey and Tristan sprayed globs of sauce, flecks of cheese and chunks of meat all over their plates.

"You two are such pigs." She sighed, but smiled.

_Yeah, _Yugi agreed silently. _They're pigs. But I wouldn't trade them for anyone else, no matter how well mannered they may be._

He watched them for a moment, his dearest of companions; a small smile spreading over his face.

Suddenly, a hand grasped his shoulder from behind, and a soft voice whispered.

"Yugi?"

He nearly choked on his food he was so startled. Everyone turned to look as he attempted to swallow without killing himself. He coughed a couple of times before Grandpa took pity on him and came over with a glass of water.

"Slow down child, you'll hurt yourself." He scolded gently. Yugi, after downing half the glass in one swallow, began breathing again and smiled a little.

"Sorry grandpa, I guess I got a little carried away. All this story telling really works up an appetite."

He had gotten the impression, from both the tone of voice and the secretive way Yami had contacted him, that it was not meant to be a public question. So he did not reveal him to the others just yet.

He casually rolled over and put his back to the counter. By all appearances it was to relax, but actually the movement allowed him to speak with Yami in private.

"I'm sorry." Yami apologized immediately. "I did not mean to scare you."

Yugi just waved his hand dismissively. _Don't worry about it. It's not the first time you've snuck up on me, and I'm sure it won't be the last! _He smiled, but his attempt at levity did not brighten Yami's unusually darkened expression.

"What's wrong?" He asked quietly, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder. He could sense Yami's disquiet, and the feeling made Yugi a little anxious in return. Yami was never unsettled without good reason.

Yami opened his mouth, but no words came forth. He sighed and hung his head, his lips pulling up at the corners into a sad, half-smile.

"I want to ask you something, but I'm not sure how..." He admitted softly, thinking. "Hmmm..."

_You can tell me anything Yami, you know that._ Yugi tried to assure him. Yami nodded once, but still seemed indecisive.

"I know, but there is a certain way this must be put." He suddenly looked up and deep into Yugi's eyes, as though he was searching for something.

"I think I know how this needs to be done... but I'll wait. I need time to prepare, so I'll see you later, all right?" And with that, he disappeared, retreating to the Puzzle to plan whatever it was he was planning. Yugi just shrugged mentally before rejoining his friends.

****

Joey collapsed onto the couch with a satisfied huff.

"Thanks for the pizza gramps!" He called, crossing his arms contentedly across his stomach and closing his eyes.

"You're making me tired just watching you." Tea commented dryly, smothering a yawn.

"It is getting late." Yugi agreed. "The guest room is free if you guys want it."

"I've got my sleeping bag, thanks." Tristan replied, and Tea nodded.

"I'm set too, and I don't think Joey's going to be moving for a while." She grinned, motioning with her head toward the teen, who was already sprawled and snoring.

"Well, so long as he's comfortable I guess..." Yugi shrugged, tossing a blanket over him.

"The bathroom is just down the hall, give me a shout if you need anything."

"'Night." They both called back, spreading over the floor and wiggling into their bedrolls. Yugi waited till they were properly settled before he flicked off the light. Then he crept silently up the stairs.

****

"Yami?" He whispered tentatively into the darkness. He slipped hesitantly into the room, aware of how very dark it was, and realizing that this could be the perfect opportunity for a certain someone to decide to scare him out of his wits. But he need not have worried. Yami seemed to step out of the very air itself, but he did so in full view so he wouldn't startle Yugi again. The puzzled look was still on his face, but there was a determined undertone to his posture as well.

"Did you figure out what you wanted to ask me?" Yugi asked, walking over to his window and pulling the curtains open. The moonlight spilled onto him, throwing his elongated shadow across the room.

"I think so." Yami answered, turning his back to Yugi and looking out the window as the youth slipped into his night clothes. "Make yourself comfortable, this could take a while."

"Okay." Yugi shrugged and jumped into his bed lightly wriggling under the covers, settling in with an expectant look on his face.

Yami seemed unusually distracted. He sat at the foot of the bed with a faraway look in his eye; and after a moment he sighed heavily.

"Yami?" Yugi asked, concerned. It was so strange, normally Yugi could read Yami inside and out. Like when he was subconsciously glaring daggers at Kaiba, or wanting to hear more about modern day life and yet was too embarrassed to ask. But now, Yugi was finding it difficult to even find a hint of what was bothering him.

"Have you ever noticed that it's always the dragon?" he murmured, more to himself than to Yugi it seemed. "No matter how the story is retold, the dragon is always the villain. Is it because all dragons are inherently evil? Or is it because they have no choice?"

Now he turned to look at Yugi directly, his expression unreadable.

"Can I tell you a story?" he asked, adding softly. "Please?"

"Umm, sure?" Yugi answered, his confusion twisting the response into a question. He shook off the lame answer and leaned forward, resting a hand on Yami's knee.

"If it's that important to you, then go right ahead. Show me what's bothering you."

"Actually," Yami smiled a bit himself. "Showing you my point of view was _exactly_ what I had in mind." he raised his hand slowly, his transparent flesh stopping at eye-level.

"Are you sure you're ready?" Yami asked once more, just to be sure. Yugi wiggled further into the pillows, decided he was comfortable, and nodded up at Yami with bright eyes.

Yami's hand started moving again, closer to Yugi's face, and a small tremble gripped his stomach momentarily.

But he chased it away as soon as it came; firming his jaw and looking Yami right in the eye. He trusted his partner.

As if he was reading Yugi's thoughts, Yami gave a small, reassuring smile. "Don't be afraid. This won't hurt, I promise."

And then, the Millennium Symbol grew to life on Yami's forehead, as his hand closed the gap to settle lightly on Yugi's brow. With a small jolt and a shiver, Yugi fell backwards into blackness.


	2. Royal Awakening

When he again opened his eyes, something seemed... different. It was still dark, obviously he'd not been out for very long.

"Yami?" He whispered, sitting up and casting his eyes around the room for the spirit.

The first thing he noticed was that Yami was not there. Physically or mentally.

The second thing he realized, with no small amount of alarm, was that this was not his room.

He froze, scanning these unfamiliar surroundings with more than a touch of unease. How on earth did his wind up in this place? Wherever _this_ was...

"Yami?" he called again, more of a soft squeak really, his gentle plea edged with panic.

_Alright, okay, calm down. Nothing to worry about, no need to panic. Obviously that pizza is not sitting very well with me right now, and it's giving me crazy dreams._

Yugi gripped a piece of skin between his thumb and forfinger, and piched himself hard. He jerked in surprise and glared at his hand in shock, as though it had betrayed him.

_Ow. Okay, so... not dreaming. That's fine. No big deal. I can handle this, I mean, I've been through worse..._

Yugi examined the room once again, more thoroughly now as his breathing calmed. Faintly, he noticed that the room was steadily growing lighter. Had he slept the whole night away after all?

He rolled over and attempted to swing his legs over the bedside, but surprised himself when all he managed to do was turn into an 'L' shape. It was then that he realized that this bed was easily three times the size of his own, and the sheets were a dark crimson color.

It took a bit of struggling to extract himself from the thin sheets, for although they were quite smooth and silky he had apparently tangled himself up quite well in the night. When he finally got away from the bed that was trying to swallow him alive, he stumbled to the window, all the while shaking the pins and needles from his legs. He began to argue with himself under his breath.

"This is a dream. It has to be! Ah, ow. A very vivid, very life-like dream."

_Who told you this was a dream? _Said a soft and cold voice inside his head.

"Yami, is that you? Thank goodness, you were really starting to scare me. Where am I? How did I get here? I-"

_I am not Yami._

"What?" Yugi gasped, the word escaping his lips before he could stop himself. Biting his lower lip, he continued the conversation mentally, not wanting the intruder to hear the tremor in his voice.

_Then who are you? _He demanded, trying to peer into the consciousness behind the voice. But he encountered nothing but a wall.

_Someone you will come to know soon enough, your majesty. _The voice whispered, the words dripping with venom. And then it was gone, just as suddenly as it had come.

"Your 'majesty'?" Yugi blinked, now thoroughly confused. Maybe this wasn't a dream. Because that _definitely_ was not Yami's voice. That wasn't even Yami's voice disguised as a villain, it was too cold, too dark. It had to be someone else.

Or some_thing_.

He shivered as that thought washed over him, bringing the dark words back. _Who told you that this was a dream?_

Yugi walked over to the lightening window, meaning to throw it open, but he stopped as soon as he touched the thick, heavy fabric and looked for a rope to pull it open instead.

_This place must be like a mansion or something. Where am I?_

The question was answered the second the curtains were thrown. An unbroken plain of forest stretched endlessly before him, nearly touching the horizon where the sun had just crested. And rising up in front of him, tall flag scraping the sky and waving proudly in the wind, was a great stone tower.

He was in a castle.

He let out a low whistle, totally blown away. Still awed by the sheer realism this place had. Some of the stones were cracked roughly in places, and there was a well-manicured, enclosed field below him, where several small equine figures pranced in the early morning light.

A loud knock sounded on the door just then, breaking his thoughts apart. He spun around, startled, as a loud voice reached him.

"Highness? The king has requested a summons. My prince? I know the hour is early but the day grows long! Let's not waste it!"

The door handle rattled as the speaker entered the room. A short, grandmotherly looking figure entered, carrying a small bundle of cloth.

"Oh good, you're awake!" She smiled chipperly, laying a long warm-looking towel out on the bed and clapping her hands, calling in a servant with a pitcher of hot water. Yugi just stood open mouthed at them all. Prince?

One of the servants walked over to the wash basin in the adjoining room, and filled it with the steaming water while the elder woman rushed over to a large oakwood wardrobe and threw it open. She gave a few 'tut-tuts' as she searched through the fabric, finally pulling out a very regal looking outfit that also looked very uncomfortable.

"Now, this may be a little fancy, but you'll see why the outfit is necessary after breakfast. Hurry and wash up, the king and queen are waiting." And with that, she gathered up the other servants and swept out of the room.

Yugi stared open-mouthed at the door, completely at a loss. After a moment though, he came to the conclusion that he couldn't just stand there gaping all day, especially if the king was calling. Rather than let logic start arguing with him again, he gave a small mental shrug and just let the matter go.

He let his thoughts run through his mind like the water down his back as he bathed. This was beginning to sound a lot like their game earlier. But then, did that mean that this reality was going to follow the flow of the game itself? He couldn't know, nor could he figure out what _his_ purpose was in all of this, so he figured the best thing to do would be to just go along with it.

Who knows, this could be fun!

****

After he had finished getting dressed, (which took him long enough on it's own,) he was scrambling down the halls as fast as he could, praying he wouldn't be late. He guessed more than chose his path as many twists and turns came up, but somehow he made it to the great dining hall. Even more miraculous, he was right on time.

Everyone in the room turned to look as he cracked open the huge double doors, and all of the stares drilling into him made him blush for a moment until he recognized who the stares belonged to.

The realization struck home like a physical blow a second later when he locked gazes with the king.

"Joey?!"


	3. The Fate of Many

A ripple of shocked amazement coursed through the room, and Yugi remembered too late that it was probably very rude to shout out the first name of the king in front of everyone. He bit his lip in embarrassment, this whole prince thing was going to take some getting used to.

From the corner of his eye he watched a tall white-blond haired man stand slowly and turn a scary scowl on him. His fine lord's clothing did not hide his identity from Yugi's shocked eyes, indeed, the regal clothing enhanced his aura of darkness. Had he not been staring at Yugi with what could only be described as a death glare, he imagined he would be laughing his head off right about now. As it was, he only swallowed loudly, those dark, soulless eyes refusing to let him go.

"Really my king, are your children so undisciplined that they will address their their own father so rudely?" The man spoke, his voice just as cold as his eyes. Yugi looked down, ashamed.

But Joey raised a hand to silence the man. "Peace, Lord Marik." Joey spoke, his normally care-free and vibrant voice as somber and noble as Yugi had ever heard it. "These troubled times have us all on edge. To get upset over every trivial little slip would waste more time and effort than we can afford."

Marik sat back down, still not letting Yugi out of his gaze.

"Come Yugi," Joey beckoned to him, motioning to a vacant chair along the table. "You are just in time for the meeting."

Yugi took his seat, letting his eyes wander to face after familiar face. Marik's lighter half sat next to his darker counterpart, looking a little embarrassed at his behavior. He nearly jumped when Bakura seemed to step out of thin air, for he was obscured by the large chair Joey was sitting in. He was wearing a long plain brown robe and he held a notebook and quill in his hands. He was scribbling at a furious pace, marking every one of the king's words. Duke was there too. He paused in his scrutiny when a warm hand found his and gave a friendly squeeze.

"Good morning, my son. How was your sleep?" The queen whispered to him. Yugi turned to her to give a casual response, but the words caught in his throat as soon as he saw her. Had he stopped to think about it, he supposed that he should not have been surprised. But seeing her here now, arm in arm with his best friend, shocked him into temporary silence. For there, sitting right in front of him, dressed in a pale lilac gown, was Mai Valentine.

_This... is so weird._

Eventually, a smile made its way onto his face, and he squeezed his 'mothers' hand in return.

"Fine thank you. And how was yours?" He asked, becoming more comfortable with the formal speech so common in this time. She flashed a dazzling smile at him.

"My rest was peaceful, though my neck has been rather sore lately. Do you find your pillows too full for your liking?"

_I don't know, I only just got here this morning. _Yugi thought to himself. But before he could form any sensible reply, the king called order to the gathering.

An instant hush settled over the assembled nobles. Joey wasted no time with formalities, he sensed that they were anxious and so he got right to the heart of the problem.

"I am sure that you are all well aware of the rumors that have been circulating around the kingdom concerning the rumblings of the earth." He began, to nods of agreement.

"Ever since my forefathers settled in this land, every generation of kings has spoken in fearful reverence of the great mountain of fire that rests not too far from here. It is said that when the moon peaks above it once every hundred years, a nightmarish beast without a soul erupts from it's depths. The creature demands a sacrifice to appease its bloodlust, and my ancestors have always honored that tradition, having no other choice. Now we are nearing that time of year when we would be required to offer up one of our own, the firstborn maiden of the royal family. This has been the tradition for generations, passed down to ensure another hundred years of peace from the monster in exchange for one life."

Joey alternated his gaze between all of the nobles seated before him, his stance firm and his eyes suddenly smoldering.

"But no more. I intend to end that horrendous tradition here and now! Should the monster come it will find not a pretty maiden offered up on a silver platter, no! It instead will find every sword, spear and flaming arrow pointed at it's ugly face, for I will not suffer even a single person to fall to this abomination!"

Shouts erupted all along the hall at this proclamation, some in agreement, but most in anger. More than one person leapt to his feet in downright outrage; his face twisted.

"Have you gone mad?" One voice pulled Yugi's attention to it like a magnet, and he found his eyes drawn to the face that he knew so well. Cold chills ran down his back when he saw the speaker, and a surge of violent and painful memories flooded over him. He shrank back in his chair, trying not to be seen. It was Dartz.

"You cannot possibly intend to risk the safety of the entire kingdom over the fate of one girl!"

Joey suddenly stood up, imposing and regal and ultimately powerful. The sharp contrast between this man and the Joey that Yugi had known for most of his life came an unwelcome discomfort.

"She is not just 'one girl', Lord Dartz." Joey growled, doing his best to keep his voice level though his eyes were burning. "She is my daughter, and I will not see her taken by this foul creature. I have faith in my armies to defeat the beast."

"Thousands of your soldiers will fall to the monster's appetite before it is slain." Marik retorted, paying no heed to his lighter half tugging on his sleeve to quiet him. "You would kill so many to ensure your daughter's safety? Such a selfish act does not fit a man of your reputation, my king." He spat.

Before the confrontation had a chance to grow any more violent, Duke stood up. Yugi noticed with curiosity that he seemed to grab the others attention as soon as he did so; they seemed to consider his opinion of great importance. The noise level reduced dramatically.

"We understand your pain, King Wheeler." He began, choosing his words carefully. "But the fact remains that every other king had to go through this same trial that you now find before you. The choice that stares you in the face now is by no means an easy one, and yet the answer remains clear. In order to protect the kingdom as a whole, your daughter will need to be given to the monster. Should you choose another path, then the counsel cannot stand beside you as you descend to your grave."

Duke's gaze was not unkind, but he was firm. And he was right, Yugi realized sadly. Joey was going to have to make a decision that would affect the entire land. Give up his daughter and ensure cooperation from the soulless monstrosity? Or try and fight the demon off?

He knew the answer Joey would give before he even uttered it.

"Then so be it, gentlemen. I have made my choice. But if you will not stand beside me in battle, then I would advise that you make haste for your own lands. If we anger the beast and we are defeated..." he paused for a moment, reflecting on the weight of his choice. "then I doubt it will differentiate between those loyal to my cause and those who would give it what it wants. You should make certain that you are far out of the reach of it's ire."

Duke bowed his head. "Very well then. Though it pains me to let you do this, I believe you cannot be convinced otherwise. I shall-"

He was interrupted then by a loud banging sound that echoed through the hall as the doors were flung open. A very beautiful young maiden stood trembling in the opening, her hands clenched at her sides and a look of fierce determination on her face. Without waiting for an introduction, and not caring to explain why she was here, she strode forward, her ginger colored hair rippling with the folds of her soft pink dress.

"Princess Serenity!" Joey called sharply. "You know that you cannot enter these halls when the nobles are gathered. Why have you come?"

"Because if you are discussing _my_ fate, then I would rather be here to participate if you don't mind, father." She said coldly, stopping before him and glaring at him. "I have a right to speak in this matter."

"You need not fear, daughter." Joey soothed, resting a hand on her arm and attempting to calm her. "The matter has been settled, and you are not going to be sacrificed to the beast." But she jerked away from his touch.

"No! You do not understand, I must go! If I do not accept my duty and my fate, then the whole kingdom will suffer! How can you expect me to live with my selfishness if I am responsible for the death of so many innocents? I won't stay, I must be sacrificed."

"No!" Joey refused vehemently. "You are not to go, and that is final. We will speak no more of this matter."

Serenity's face grew red and she opened her mouth to utter an angry retort when Yugi was suddenly struck with an idea.

"Wait." He said softly, not expecting to be heard. But all eyes turned to him, and more than one pair narrowed in open annoyance.

"I think I may have a solution." He said loudly, and confidently he hoped. He turned to Joey. "Father, where is it written that it must be the princess that is sacrificed?"

It took a long moment for the weight of what he had just said to settle in. He watched Joey's eyes continued to widen until they seemed they would simply roll out of their sockets. He seemed uncertain of whether or not to take such a statement seriously, and so he simply stared. Yugi clarified his intentions for him.

"Why don't I go?" He looked around at the other members, calm and persuasive in his speech. "If the beast accepted me instead of the princess, I would have a much better chance of escaping than she."

Joey finally found his voice again. "How would you make your way past the creature? It likely has senses sharpened to razor precision from living so long in the blackness." Yugi shrugged as though it did not matter. And truthfully, it did not. Not to him anyway. But he spoke what he thought would be the most effective argument at that point.

"Then at least I can die with the knowledge that I kept my sister from harm." Yugi said proudly, his lips almost stumbling over the word 'sister'.

_This is just way too weird, even for me._

There was a long moment of tense silence as the news was processed. Joey's face was showing his emotions openly, fear and pride and worry etching lines into his expression. Duke spoke softly, not wanting to seem intrusive on such a private decision. "It seems to be a solid plan to me, my king. Young prince Yugi has shown a great deal of confidence and determination in this matter. I hold faith that he will be able to hold his own, even against so mighty a foe."

Serenity remained unusually quiet, looking at Yugi with mixed emotions in her eyes. Joey's gaze alternated back and forth between Yugi's unwavering stance and the hard expressions of the counsel members. Finally, he sighed, his voice low and pained.

"Very well. Your courage is admirable Yugi, in this time when we need it most." He placed his hand on Yugi's head. "I'll not have you walk to the creature alone and unarmed though, take the captain of the Royal Guard with you. He should be able to defend you well enough should the deal with the monster take a foul turn."

Yugi nodded, grateful that he would not be walking straight into the jaws of danger alone. He would appreciate the added company, for he had a sinking suspicion that the voice he had heard earlier belonged to whoever or whatever this great monster was, and if he was to face such a dark creature, he did not want to do so alone.


	4. First Prince

"Yugi, wait." Serenity bade him, catching his wrist and stopping him as he walked down the hall. Yugi turned to look at her, curiosity written all over his face. Serenity was watching him intently, her eyes shining worriedly in the early morning light.

"I just... I mean, I can't just..." She stammered, unable to bring herself to utter the words. Yugi understood perfectly. She was grateful, deep down, that she would not be sacrificed after all, no matter what her earlier proclamation. But she was scared for him too, he saw, with a pang of sympathy. Even though he had volunteered to go in her place, in effect saving her life, Serenity did not want him to face such a danger. She was scared that she would lose him for good, and even though Yugi knew that this was still only a dream, he found his heart grow a little warmer with the knowledge that she didn't want him getting hurt. He reached out and twined his fingers with hers, giving her a confident smile that she could not hold against. Her worried expression faltered in the face of his courage.

"Don't worry about me, Serenity." Yugi said, smiling sincerely. "I'll be all right, and as soon as I escape from the beast we can go riding in the countryside together like we used to do when we were little."

Yugi honestly had no idea what had made those words fly to his lips, but as soon as he said them, images of rolling hills and grassy plains disappearing under flying hooves came to his mind. He could almost feel the wind waving through his hair and tugging on his long cloak as he and Serenity chased the birds across the cloudless blue skies. A happy feeling of freedom that he had not felt in a long time bubbled up within him.

A tear slipped from his sister's face, but she was smiling softly through the pain. She bent a little and kissed his forehead, murmuring softly.

"Thank you, my brother. I shall never forget this brave deed, and my life will be forever in your debt." She pulled back and smiled sincerely, her eyes still shining, but with gratitude. "Come back to us safely." And then she swept past him, running down the hall on bare feet, making not a whisper of sound.

Yugi started walking again, not really sure where he was going. The spot on his forehead where Serenity had kissed him seemed warmer than the rest of him. He had to almost constantly be reminding himself of the fact that none of this was real. It _felt _ real enough, more so than any ordinary dream was supposed to, of that he was sure. He could feel the cool touch of the stones beneath his hand if he brushed it against the wall as he walked. When he passed by one of the windows, the sunlight warmed him as it threw it's blindingly golden rays across the glass. If he raised his head to the air and sniffed, he could just make out the rich aroma of the servants cooking breakfast in the kitchen. Everything was so real, so alive, but yet it was only a dream.

_Is that an excuse? _ A small voice in his heart asked. _Just because it is not actually happening in the world you are used to, does not mean that it does not exist. Maybe you really are transported to another world when you dream. _

Yugi felt himself growing more and more confused the more he discovered about this place. _Maybe it's not real..._ he thought. _But the thoughts and the feelings that exist here certainly are. Just because the events themselves do not really exist in my world, it does not mean that the feelings are any less real, any less important._

He pictured the worry that had been on Joey's face when Yugi had offered himself up as the sacrifice for the kingdom. His face had betrayed the fear and true agony of a tough decision; which child to let go of. There was no way that could have been faked. And he remembered the way Joey's eyes had lit up when he had seen Serenity, despite the fact that she was not supposed to be there. _Joey loves his sister more than anything else in the whole world. That feeling did not die when I came here. The only thing that changed was their relationship. From brother and sister to father and daughter._

Yugi was slightly more at ease now that he had put some of the puzzle together at least. Dream or no, the love that permeated this place was as tangible as anywhere else, and he was determined to make sure that he did his best to keep it safe.

Still meandering the corridors aimlessly, Yugi let his thoughts go. He was starting to remember more and more of this place, (if remember was the right term to use considering he had only just arrived.) But there was definitely something coming back to him. He began to slowly realize just where he was, for example. Up ahead there was the King and Queen's chamber, and his room was only a few paces before that. Serenity's room was back the other way, built where the old store room with the wall-to-wall window used to be, because she loved to rise with the sun in the mornings.

It was amazing how much detail was actually coming back to him. _This is so weird_. He thought again. Just then, the sound of soft whispers reached his ears, and he slowed down, putting his back to the wall and listening hard.

"Are you sure you're all right?" It was Joey's voice, low and filled with worry still. He was answered with a sigh.

"As well as I can be, considering I am about to lose my only son." That was Mai, her voice choked and shuddering.

"Don't say that, we cannot know for sure." Yugi peeked around the corner in time to see Joey gather her up in his arms, stroking her long golden hair softly. "Yugi is strong, and he is incredibly brave. You know that he'll make it through this."

"This is not just any normal enemy!" Mai cried, pushing away from him. "No one even knows what this _thing_ is! It has been terrorizing the kingdom for thousands of years; and even when it sleeps it strikes fear into the hearts of the bravest warriors!" She stood rigidly, trembling hard.

"Why didn't you tell him?" She whispered, and Joey's face hardened with pain.

"What good would the knowledge have done? I would have only scared him. It's better that he does not know."

"Better that he walks to his doom unprepared?" She shouted, her anxiety as a mother bubbling over in misdirected anger towards her husband.

"Better that he does not follow the same path!" Joey shouted back. Mai went white as a sheet, and she wobbled, leaning against the wall for support. Joey immediately softened, the anger flying from his face and his tone like dust in the face of a powerful wind.

"You know the legend." He whispered, and Mai screwed her eyes shut to hold back her tears. "There is no doubt that Yugi is the one."

"No. No! It cannot be!" Mai whimpered, holding her head in her hands.

"It is. Just look at him Mai, he has the same air of nobility and righteousness as the First Prince." Joey paused for a moment, thoughtful. "His eyes are the same as well. Pure, innocent, full of love."

Mai sobbed and flung herself at him, tears streaking her face. "I cannot lose him! I won't! He is my only son, you cannot do this to him!"

"The choice is no longer mine to make." Joey said firmly. "Yugi had made his choice, and no one will sway him."

Mai's voice sounded hopeless and defeated, muffled because her face was pressed into Joey's shirt. "Then we have already lost him."

Yugi's eyes were wide as he listened to Mai's anguished sobbing. Was the monster really such a nightmare that the whole kingdom trembled at the mere mention of it? And who was this 'First Prince'? And what was it that Joey had not wanted to tell him?

Joey seemed at a loss as to how to comfort her. He began to sing softly, a soothing and yet somehow haunting melody that seemed to hold much meaning to the both of them.

_Light has existed since the dawn of all, _

_ Teaching, guiding, protecting._

_ But so to has the Darkness._

_ Lying, misleading, stealing._

_ When the Darkness grows too strong,_

_ And the Light is swallowed in it's grasp,_

_ Only one will set it free. _

_ The First of the Last, and the Last of the First._

_ The Prince of the greatest of Kings._

_ With courage as his cloak,_

_ And purity as his blade,_

_ He will strike down the evil Dark,_

_ And Light forever shall reign._

Mai had stopped shaking, and her face was set in an expression of reluctant acceptance.

"You believe he is the one?" She whispered, and Joey nodded.

"There can be no doubt." He grasped her by the shoulders and looked deep into her eyes. "Have faith. Yugi will succeed only if we believe in him with all our hearts."

Mai wiped the last of her tears away with the hem of her sleeve. "Very well. Though it pains me greatly, I will support him in his endeavors."

"Good." Joey whispered, giving her one more squeeze. "Then let's go fetch him for breakfast shall we?"

They turned and started toward Yugi's hiding place, and he took off down the hall as quickly and quietly as he could. When he reached his bedroom door he opened it, paused for a moment, and then shut it again, turning so it looked like he had just exited his room. When the sound of the door banging closed echoed through the hall the King and Queen rounded the corner.

"Ah good, you're up and about." Joey said, obviously trying to keep the mood lighthearted. "Come Yugi, join us for breakfast. The servants have been working diligently all morning, and my stomach cries out for food so loudly I'm afraid I might shake the castle to it's foundation!"

He laughed and motioned for Yugi to follow them, Yugi just smiled and tagged along.

_That sounds more like the Joey I know. _He thought happily.


	5. Behind the Mask

The dining hall of the castle was filled with many people, from nobles and royalty to scribes and servants. Yugi ducked under serving trays and wove in and out of people as he let his eyes wander around the room. He was looking for someone he had noticed earlier, for he figured that if anyone could tell him more about this legend, it would be the man closest to the king. He kept seeing him too, a flash of brown robe here, a swish of white hair there. But every time he tried to get closer, something would get in the way and he would lose sight again.

"This is ridiculous." Yugi mumbled under his breath, not watching where he was going. Scarcely a moment later, he ran smack into the last person on earth he wanted to run into. Dark Marik jerked forward a bit as Yugi collided with him, nearly spilling his drink all over the shirt of his lighter half. His face darkened into it's customary scowl, and he turned slowly to deliberately enhance the effect of his stare. Yugi swallowed loudly.

"Well well," He drawled, a humorless smile creeping across his face. "Our kingdom's little hero."

Yugi was too scared to even come up with a rebuttal to the obvious insult. He thinned his lips to keep them from trembling. Just then, Marik's light half peeked around his arm and grinned.

"Ah, Yugi. Just the man I wanted to see! Come with me, I want to ask you something. S'cuse me..." he mumbled, sliding around his Yami. Without another word he grabbed Yugi's arm and tugged him away. Dark Marik's stare was like a physical weight upon his back. Marik tugged him through the crowd to a less packed area, turning to look at him with a small smile.

"I wouldn't get too close to him if I were you, my prince. He bites." He said.

"Thanks. I'm actually looking for Bakura, have you seen him?"

"Yeah, he's with the King, over by the table. But truthfully, there was something I needed to ask you. I didn't just say that to get you away from my brother."

After a couple of seconds, Yugi closed his mouth. _Wow._

"Have you given any thought as to how you're going to get away from the monster?" Marik said seriously, looking Yugi up and down. "I mean, no offense, but you don't look like a fighter to me. What happens if it doesn't wait very long before it decides to do whatever it does to it's offerings?"

"I can't know for sure if I'm even going to get the chance to get out of there." Yugi admitted softly. "I just said that to placate the King and Queen. There is a very real chance that it won't wait to complete the ritual, or whatever it is that it does to the sacrifice."

Marik raised his eyebrow. "So you might be walking straight to your death."

Yugi nodded. "Yes."

"And you're okay with that?" Marik asked incredilously.

"I will do what I must for the good of my kingdom." Yugi responded, and Marik clapped him on the shoulder.

"Then I wish you luck, young prince." He whispered, and then he turned and melted back into the throng.

Yugi cast his eyes around once more, spotting Bakura at the other end of the hall, speaking with the King. Yugi made a beeline for him, but stopped dead in his tracks a second later when another figure seemed to simply drop out of the sky and land in front of him, filling his ears with jingling sounds and filling his line of sight with nothing but bright and extravagant colours.

The Jester gave an overly exaggerated bow, his hat flopping over to hang into his masked face. It was a rather creepy mask, with its wide, toothless grin and darkened eyes. Without a word, the Jester stood up, his movements flowing and graceful and overly dramatic. He motioned to Yugi and pranced away, the sounds of his bells ringing loudly in the hall. No one took notice of him unless he stepped on their toes, which he seemed to be fond of doing.

Yugi glanced back and forth between the rapidly disappearing figure and Bakura, who still stood by the table. He sighed and moved after the mysterious man, figuring he could always catch up to Bakura later.

He lost sight of the brightly coloured figure a few times, but the ever constant ringing of bells guided him. After a second he had broken out of the crowd once more to find the Jester beckoning him into the adjacent room.

After a cautious glance around the room, Yugi hesitantly stepped into the darkened entryway. He had barely crossed the threshold when the door suddenly swung shut behind him; the Jester blocking the door. The shadows in the room reflected sinisterly off of the mask now. Yugi took a step back, suddenly afraid, and opened his mouth to call out. But before a sound escaped his lips, the man had leapt forward and clapped a gloved hand over his mouth. Yugi started to stuggle, thrashing against the hold.

"Wait, wait!" The man hissed from behind the mask, in a voice that Yugi once again instantly recongnized. The man reached up and tore the mask off of his face, revealing the last person Yugi would have expected: Seto Kaiba.

"What?" Yugi gasped. Had he not been so surprised, he would have been laughing _so _hard right now. But the look on Kaiba's face made the situation entirely less than humorous. His icy blue eyes drilled into Yugi with such an intensity that he was taken aback. Kaiba cut straight to the chase.

"Listen, I know what you're up to. You're planning on just giving yourself over to the beast and letting it do whatever it needs to, right?" He whispered, low and dangerous. "Did you even think for a second, one second, of what that would do to them? Your _family?_ If they ever found out that you willingly walked into your death and didn't even _try _ to fight your way back out, it would crush them. Especially your father!"

Yugi's eyes widened as the true meaning behind Kaiba's words registered. "You care about him." He breathed, awed. "You actually do care about him."

"Of course I do!" Kaiba growled, hanging his head. His tone softened. "That idiot is the only reason my little brother is still alive. If it wasn't for him..." His head suddenly snapped up again, staring straight into Yugi's eyes.

"Look, it doesn't matter what I think all right? The point is that the king would be devastated if he learned that you did not even try and fight to come back to him. Knowing him, that moron will think it's because you don't love him or something stupid like that." His gaze suddenly grew suspicious.

"You _do_ love him, don't you?"

"Of course!" Yugi whispered hotly, echoing Kaiba. "My family means the world to me."

"Good." Kaiba muttered, no apology forthcoming. "Then just promise me this. If you think you're going to die, and you can't see any other way out, then I want your word that you will at least go down fighting."

Yugi opened his mouth, but Kaiba held up his hand to stop him. "I only ask this because if I have to watch my friend suffer the loss of his only son, then I want to be able to tell him that you tried to return to him without having to lie through my teeth." Again, Kaiba's visage and tone softened, revealing his gentler nature for a fraction of a second. "Please, on your word as a prince, for your father. Please."

Yugi looked at Kaiba in surprise, seeing an honest plea deep within his soul. He really did care.

"You have my word, and truthfully given." Yugi said, putting a hand on his heart. "But I have nothing to fight the beast off with should the encounter turn into a battle. I cannot weild a sword... against such a monter." He stammered, thinking that the admission that he couldn't use a sword at all would be rather suspicious. But Kaiba nodded anyway.

"A blade would do no good against such a creature, else the king's armies would have destroyed it by now." He agreed, reaching into a hidden fold in his outfit. "But this might."

He held up a single teardrop shaped gemstone, dangling on the end of a thin silver chain.

"This has been passed down through generations of my family for hundreds of years." Kaiba whispered solemnly, letting the gem dance on the end of its chain. "When my father gave it to me, he told me to wait for the 'First of the Last' or something like that. I believe he was talking about you."

"That's in the legend, isn't it?" Yugi asked. "What can you tell me about it?" Kaiba shrugged.

"Only that it foretells of a great evil shrouding this land, and that when the time comes the Darkness will merge with the Light and drive out the evil for good. It makes little sense to me, but I never worried about it. It was never important to me."

He gave the necklace to Yugi, and he slipped it around his neck and under his tunic, out of sight from less than friendly eyes.

"I cannot tell you its purpose, my father always said that would become clear when the time was right."

"That's always the way these things work, isn't it?" Yugi mumbled. He looked at Kaiba with a sideways glance. "So... what's with the outfit? You don't seem like the type of person who would willingly dress up in that kind of attire."

Kaiba gave a half-hearted smile and a sigh. "It's for him. It always has been."

"Joey?" Yugi asked, truly curious. Kaiba nodded.

"I owe him my little brother's life, and my own by extension. I could not live without him. I tried to repay this debt, but it quickly became apparant that I was not cut out for his style of ruling. We have differing viewpoints that would clash too harshly in the political world, especially if we were supposed to be allies. So I adopted this role instead." He plucked at the end of his poofy sleeve.

"Aside from the ridiculous outfit, being the Court Jester isn't all that bad. I wear a mask so that no one truly knows who I am, and I can state my opinions freely and without fear of retribution. I am the only one who can speak without many restrictions on my tongue in this whole court. It has it's perks." Kaiba grinned. "And getting to make fun of arrogant snobs like Lord Marik over there is way more fun than you would think. But only because I know that he can't do anything about it."

Yugi laughed, and Kaiba joined in too. It was such a carefree laugh, one that Yugi had never heard him utter before. He couldn't help but wonder if Kaiba would have been like this in his world if he had been brought up any different. Kaiba seemed to pick up on a strand of this thought, for he suddenly grew quiet.

"In all honesty though, I keep this role because it does my heart good to be able to ease some of the stress from my friends faces. If you'd ever seen Joey when he's worrying over something really important Yugi, you'd understand why I take my job so seriously. I owe my whole world to him, and just being able to bring a smile to his face is a small way to chip away at that debt." He suddenly twirled around and replaced his mask, heading to the door on the opposite end of the room he had entered. Then he paused, lifting the mask and turning back to Yugi for a moment.

"You know, I'm really not the cold and heartless demon everybody seems to think I am." He smiled deviously. "Not all the time, at least. It all depends on who is brave enough to look behind the mask." And with that, he was gone.


	6. The Prophecy

When Yugi again stepped into the dining hall, he had to pause and take a deep breath. So much was spinning around in his head, so many questions and comparisons between this world and the world he had been living in. There were many similarities, like the fact that every face here was in some way connected someway to his present life. Or that the relations remained basically the same. (With the exception of Dark Marik, who had never been known for his collected nature. It was the first time Yugi had ever seen him in a room full of people without that 'I'm going to kill you all, and I'm going to like it.' gleam in his eyes.) But there were differences too, things that were subtle and yet crucial in the way he looked at people here. Take Kaiba for example. Yugi could not help but wonder if the Kaiba he had known could have a soft and caring nature to him. Or was he just reading too much into this?

He couldn't know, and so he simply put the inquiries into a far corner of his mind to brood over later. Right now, he had something much more pressing he needed to take care of.

He again began his weaving dance through the crowd that was gathered in the room. This time he was determined to make it to Bakura, no more distractions.

He was chatting with Duke near the doors to the hall, keeping his voice lowered. Yugi slipped over and gently tugged on his sleeve.

"Please excuse me sir," Yugi said to Duke as they both turned to look at him curiously. "But I need to borrow Bakura for a moment, if you don't mind."

"Actually, my prince, I was hoping to accompany you. There are a few things I would like to discuss."

Yugi looked between their open and honest faces, deciding that it couldn't hurt.

"That's fine by me." He agreed, and then turned to ask the question that had been dying to leave his lips since this morning.

"I need you to tell me about the legend. I want to know who the First Prince is."

For a split second, shock danced all over Bakura's features. "I never thought the king would have told you about the First Prince. Especially at this time!"

Yugi looked down. "Actually, he didn't tell me. I was sort of eavesdropping. But Bakura, I think I have a right to know, especially if he is tied in some way to the monster I have to face."

Bakura sighed for a moment, debating. The king was not going to like this, but...

"Very well." He agreed, but he held up a hand in warning when Yugi started to smile. "But I want your word that you will not repeat my words. It is for the royal family only to know, and if it reaches the wrong ears the end could be disastrous. Come, let us go somewhere that we may speak in private."

He led Yugi and Duke through the halls silently, every now and again glancing over his shoulder at the room they had left. Duke put a hand on his shoulder to steady him.

"The prince has a right to know. The king was wrong in keeping this from him."

"I know." Bakura sighed. "But all the same, I hate going behind his back."

Eventually they made it to the library, and Bakura ushered them inside quickly. There were books _everywhere_, and Yugi found himself breathing deeply of the wonderful scent of old paper and ancient knowledge accumulating in the vast room. Bakura locked the door and motioned for them to find seats.

He sighed and rubbed his face, already weary. "Allow me to start from the beginning my prince, though I know our history is well known to you." Yugi just nodded eagerly, his face bright with curiosity.

"Thousands of years ago, before man had yet begun to live and breathe upon this earth, there lived a great monster of the ultimate blackness. It roamed across sea and sky, above land and under it, taking what it pleased and destroying everything in sight. It was known by many names, the Vile One, the Great Destroyer, but above all, it was known as the Black King."

"The Gods foresaw that this great evil could and would destroy the earth, their most treasured creation, and so they banded together to create a warrior of Light strong enough to beat back the monster.

"And so from across the great desert there rode a single warrior in garbed shining armor of the purest silver. With his mighty sword he wounded the Black King greatly and thought it dead. Once the evil has vanished, he consecrated the land and praised the Gods for his victory. They blessed him with a family and gave him the title of King. Thus he was the first of the kings to rule our humble kingdom."

Bakura paused for a moment, settling back in his chair.

"But unfortunately, though none of them knew it at the time, the Black King was far from finished. It retreated to dark holes in the earth for many years to heal its wounds, and it came back stronger and more powerful than ever before. And this time, the king was too old to stand against it."

"But the king had a son, a prince that was revered by all of the people for his courage and bravery. He was the First Prince, and the day that he was born the whole land sang for the space of many days. The king's closest friend had a vision on the night of his birth, and the prophecy was thus..."

Bakura held his arms out to his sides and tilted his head back, like he was speaking with the heavens themselves.

"_Great is the light that shines_

_ But great too, shines the dark._

_ When peril rides upon the winds,_

_ One lonely man will walk the path of neither_

_ Light nor Shadow._

_ He will balance them both in the palm of his hand, _

_ The First of the Last, and the Last of the First._

_ And when the jaws of doom close 'round,_

_ Blessed Light will merge with Cursed Shadow,_

_ And the Evil shall be nevermore._"

Bakura sighed and slumped back in the chair a little, as though the retelling had drained him. Yugi watched with wide-eyes.

"So what happened?" He breathed, awed. "What happened to the First Prince?"

"The Black King came to challenge him in the dead of night. The Prince willingly accepted the summons, and he and the creature did battle then and there. It was a terrible war that shook the heavens and the earth alike, so great was the power of these two beings. But though the Prince was indeed strong, the Black King proved to be more cunning than he, and it performed foul deeds of trickery and illusion that brought the Prince to his knees. In his final desperate act before he was defeated, the First Prince used the last of his power to transform his soul into a bright light. That one light was full of purity and goodness, compassion and love, and a dark creature such as the Black King was verily poisoned by the very sight of it. The light shot toward the creature's twisted heart and cut deep. Both the Black King and the First Prince vanished, never to be seen again."

Yugi shuddered in fear and felt his heart start beating faster; for he sensed that there was more to this tale than what Bakura was letting on. He suddenly fixed Yugi with a heavy stare, his eyes growing shadowed.

"But then, years later, a man with an evil heart went to the untouched ground that the Prince and the Black King had fought, seeking remnants of their great powers to use for himself. All he found was a single gemstone, the same stone that you now wear around your neck."

Yugi's hand went flying to his chest, feeling the tiny stone that had settled near his heart. "How did you know?"

"I can sense the thing. A foul piece of magic it is, a corrupted fragment of what once was. I can feel the evil radiating off of it from here."

Yugi blinked in some surprise. He touched the gem again absently, but he could not feel anything coming from it. Nothing bad anyway.

"The man tried to use the stone to further himself and his goals, but he did not understand or respect the power that the stone contained and it overwhelmed him. The man was killed instantly, and the Black King was freed. But not fully freed mind you, else the whole kingdom would have died then and there. The Prince's magic was still strong enough to imprison the beast, within the only natural place powerful enough to contain its evils: the mountain of fire."

"But then, where did the whole sacrificing the princess ritual come up?" Yugi asked, puzzled. "If the Black King was imprisoned..."

"As I said before, the King, although not fully freed, was also not fully trapped either." Bakura answered somberly. "If it so chose, it could have tried to break the bonds of its enchantment and simply continue its destructive existence. But the King, though a monster, was not an unthinking creature. It knew the prophecy, and understood that it would be finished permanently should the vision come to pass. So, in an attempt to save its own life, it made a deal with the kingdom that they had no choice but to obey, for they knew the consequences of disobedience. It offered to stay deep within the mountain for the span of one hundred years. But on the hundredth year, when the full moon peaked just over its rim, it would rise and demand a sacrifice. It wanted the first born maiden princess."

"Why?" Yugi breathed, sounding like a child listening to a horror story. Bakura shrugged.

Perhaps the beast simply could not live without the taste of human flesh for such a long time, or perhaps it thought that the prophecy predicted a maiden was to finish it and so it wanted to take the purest before she could. Whatever its reasons, it has always wanted a girl. Never a prince."

"And so here we stand, on the eve of the 'ceremony', if you will, and King Wheeler has decided not to go along with the Black King's demands after all. I don't think it's going to be too happy." Yugi commented dryly, perhaps for the first time fully realizing what sort of danger they were walking into here. And then Duke stood up. Yugi jumped, he had nearly forgotten that Duke was even there.

"Actually, prince Yugi, I think the beast will be perfectly satisfied. At least until the trap is sprung. Here is what I propose: we go to the glen on the eve of the morrow, and wait for the creature to erupt from its place of concealment. The beast will not wait very long to come, because it has until the moon begins to fade from its prison to capture the 'princess' and return. If it misses that deadline it will die, released from the spells that kept it alive after the First Prince tried to slay it. So we set you up as a decoy of sorts, and wait until the dragon is within striking distance before we attack. I don't believe for a moment that we can kill the thing, but if we are fortunate enough we may be able to drive it off. Then perhaps we can talk some sense into the people and formulate a plan to leave this foul land behind us, to a place the monster dares not pursue."

Yugi was nodding his head absently, liking the idea of not actually having to set foot in the monster's lair at all. Bakura stayed silent for a moment, knowing what the other two did not. The people would not leave this land, no matter how great the danger. They were tied to it as surely as if their souls were connected with the earth's core. But he just shrugged away the doubts, realizing there was little he could do about it anyway and deciding that they could burn that bridge when they came to it.

"Will the counsel support a decision made by one member alone?" Bakura asked, seeing a flaw in the logic. Duke merely shrugged.

"I cannot offer their support, for we had already decided upon neutrality in this war. But I myself am of a different mindset, and I don't see why they would not let myself alone aid King Wheeler. I am expendable surely, and I have my successors chosen."

"Sounds like a solid plan to me." Bakura agreed, turning to face Yugi directly. "My prince? A copper for your thoughts."

"I agree." Yugi said immediately. "We must assemble the armies, and try and drive the creature away. It is the only way to save the kingdom, ultimately."

"Then we are in agreement. The king will not be able to dispute our logic, and I daresay this plan is a lot safer than the one you concocted, prince Yugi." Duke smiled and patted his back.

Yugi chuckled and took a deep breath, trying to prepare himself mentally.

"Duke and I will go and propose our offer to the king. In the meantime Yugi, take this." Bakura whipped his parchment out and scribbled a quick note. "Give it to the captain of the royal guard and tell him to begin preparing his men immediately. We will need all of the army ready and mobilized within a few days."

Bakura stood up and walked to a nearby table, pulling a match from a pocket in his robes and lighting the candle there. He waited for a few seconds, and then dripped hot wax onto the note, stamping it with a ring on his middle finger.

"There, now the document is official. Be swift Yugi, we don't have much time to spare."

"Right." Yugi said, hoping up from his chair and grabbing the parchment in his hands, then he turned and darted out the door to head for the courtyard.

"Do you really think that this is going to work?" Bakura whispered to Duke as soon as Yugi departed.

"It has to." Duke answered gravely, his eyes suddenly no longer joyous nor optimistic. "It has to."


	7. Final Preparations

Yugi sprinted down the halls, his cloak flowing out behind him in his haste. Somehow he knew exactly where he was going, even though every new turn in the halls opened up new sights to his eyes. Soon he discovered himself at the opening to the castle, and he trotted easily along across the manicured lawns towards the stables. The smell of fresh cut hay and horse hair mixed in his nose, punctuated with sweat and dung. Yugi wrinkled his nose a bit as he continued forward. Soon he stood at the dark doors to the stable, watching the horses prance happily about in their enclosure.

"Just a second please, I'll be right with you." Someone called, the voice drifting over the horses' calls to reach him. Yugi smiled, no longer as surprised when he heard familiar voices coming from people he'd never met before. He stepped closer to the entryway to the stable, watching as a young boy gently finished brushing down a white mare's sleek and shining coat.

"That's a good girl." He crooned, stroking her long neck and letting his small fingers twine themselves in her mane. "You like to be brushed, don't you?" He patted her firmly once more and got off of the stool he was using. "Alright, go on, you're all clean and pretty."

The horse turned and pushed her slender head into the boy's arms and nuzzled him warmly.

"I know, I know, I love you too." The youth mumbled, smiling happily. "Now get outta here! I know you want to go play, so go play."

She gave a small toss of her head and trotted happily out the back doors and into the field. The boy watched her for a moment before he turned to greet Yugi.

"Oh! Welcome, my prince! I was not expecting you here!" He dipped into an apologetic bow.

Yugi smiled, a little embarrassed. "Hello Mokuba, I see you've been keeping busy." He said, trying to break the ice and establish some familiarity. Mokuba looked up with surprise.

"You know my name? How is that so? I thought I never gave it away to anyone, no one cared enough to ask."

Yugi blinked. "My father did, didn't he?" He asked, hoping that Mokuba was still Kaiba's little brother in this world too.

"Yeah, that's true. Did he ever tell you that story? Is that how you know my name?"

"Uhh..." Yugi stammered unsure what to say. Mokuba caught on in an instant.

"Oh, never mind then. I didn't think it was that important anyway, I don't know why I thought he would have..."

"Actually, I heard the tale from your brother, Mokuba. He cornered me this morning, trying to get me to reconsider my offer to go with the monster. He told me that it would devastate my family, and that I shouldn't do that. Family is the most important thing, he said he knows from experience."

"That sure sounds like something Seto would say." Mokuba whispered, keeping his eyes on the floor. He half-turned and sat on an overturned log that was off to the side, patting the seat beside him for Yugi to join.

"It's no big deal really. I was just little when Seto and I ran away. I'd caught a really bad disease that we were both sure was going to finish me eventually. Our mother could not have cared less, she decided that I was better to her dead anyway. That was the night I think both Seto and I realized that we were all that the other had. He took me out one stormy night with just the clothes on my back and we stole my mother's horse. We rode on the edge of the forest so that the rain would wash away our tracks, and eventually we made it here. My big brother pleaded with King Joey to have the royal healers fix me, and Joey agreed. I don't remember much from that time, just a lot of sleeping and fear that I wouldn't wake up. I do know that neither Seto nor Joey ever left my side when I was sick, and I think they formed a solid friendship because of that. Seto was never one to make friends very easily, but I think that's starting to change now that he's been with the King for so long."

"That's wonderful Mokuba, I'm glad that things worked out." Yugi smiled, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Me too." Mokuba grinned, rubbing his nose. "And I'm glad we can pay back Joey for all he's done for us. Oops, I mean King Joey." He giggled a bit. "We've become so close, it's really hard to remember that is is the king after all. I hope I don't forget again."

"I'm sure he wouldn't mind Mokuba, Joey's not a strict ruler."

"I know, but I want to be sure I'm respectful to him anyway. I owe him a lot, after all!"

They both laughed for a second before Mokuba suddenly jumped up.

"I heard about your mission Yugi, and I guess I shouldn't keep you any longer." He put two fingers in his mouth and whistled out a specific tune. A black and white stallion reared on his back legs impressively and galloped towards them.

"You haven't ridden in so long, I'll bet Amath is really eager to go again."

Yugi's horse trotted right up to him and bumped his face against his. He sniffed delicately at Yugi's hair and then snorted so loudly that he knocked Yugi over backwards off the log. Mokuba laughed.

"Looks like he missed you!"

Yugi picked himself up and dusted off his cloak, and Amath promptly nudged him in the lower back and made him stumble. Yugi swatted his nose playfully.

"You cut that out!" He scolded, smiling widely. Amath nodded his great head and fixed Yugi with his bright eyes, eyes that sparkled with intelligence and an infectious gentle humor.

"I'll get your saddle, my prince." Mokuba bowed again, this time teasingly, and left horse and rider to their reunion.

A few short moments later they were cantering along at a smooth pace. Yugi honestly had no idea where he was going, though his hands seemed comfortable holding the reins. But Amath was a smart horse, and he seemed to be sure of their destination. Yugi let him have his head, and the loyal creature brought him to the military barracks just a short while later.

The ringing sounds of steel on steel reached his ears as they approached, and Yugi dismounted carefully and led Amath through to the training grounds.

"Hey, Tristan!" Yugi called, waving his hands around to catch the man's attention. When the captain turned to regard him, Tristan fell to one knee in respect, and every single soldier in the courtyard simultaneously dropped their respective weapons and followed his gesture.

"Welcome." He said, rising from his crouch and smiling warmly. He dropped a hand on Yugi's head. "It does my heart good to see the king's little tyke running up and about. The day is too long to waste within the castle I say!" He laughed heartily, his armor creaking a bit as he shook.

"But I suppose I cannot be rightly calling you 'little' anymore, can I my friend?" He smiled, ruffling his hair. "What with this grand adventure you're heading off into. You'll make the kingdom proud, my boy."

"Thanks Tristan, that means a lot to me." Yugi smiled. Then he pulled out the parchment.

"Speaking of which, I actually have a favour I need to ask. Do you think it would be possible for the troops to be armed and readied by tonight? I know it's extremely short notice, and I wouldn't ask if I didn't think that it was important. But we may have a chance at beating back the evil monster for good, and I don't think such an opportunity should be wasted."

Tristan accepted the paper and gave it a quick once over. "Hmm, I tough request, I must say." He admitted quietly. "My men are not the type of warriors who will willingly walk into open battle without some kind of preparation, and this will surely test that. Let me ask them." He winked, and then turned to the assembled crowd, spreading his arms out to encompass them all.

"My brothers!" He called, letting them rise to their feet. "A wonderful opportunity has presented itself before us. We have been gifted, blessed, with our only chance to not only defend this, our home, but also to drive back an ancient evil that has been oppressing our ancestors for years."

The effect of his speech was instantaneous and truly startling. As Tristan's brave and inspiring words floated over the troops, their hand unconsciously grasped at weapon hilts, and there was a determined expression stamped on every face. Yugi felt his jaw drop slightly, as the powerful tone made even he feel a great deal more confident about this situation.

"It will not be easy, we have less time than it would take the sun to dip beneath the western horizon to prepare ourselves for battle. But I hold faith in every one of you, my men, and I know you will stand by my side as we defend that which rightfully belongs to us! Let he that opposes still his tongue and the cries of his heart!"

Tristan yelled, punching his fist in the air. The ensuing cheer was deafeningly loud, and people banged swords and shields together to voice their enthusiasm. Not one mouth remained closed.

"We can do it." Tristan assured Yugi, when the ruckus had died down and he had commanded them to begin training at once. "We stand beside you, and will see you safely through this perilous journey."

"Again, thank you." Yugi replied.

"'Tis a small thing, when weighted against the bravery you have shown. To take the princess' place in this farce is a noble and heroic deed. We are in your debt for sparing her." Tristan blushed slightly, and Yugi knew that more than simple concern for the kingdom's bloodline fueled the captain's thanks. The blush revealed what he wanted to keep hidden, but Yugi did not press him, knowing that if he wanted his secret crush on Serenity known, he would have said something. So Yugi just smiled and remounted Amath, saluting the proud warrior respectfully before galloping away.

The weight of the fast closing events could not chase the grin from his face.

Yugi returned Amath to his stall a little regretfully, as the sun began its slow and steady decent. The dusky twilight painted the sky with orange and pink hues, letting the darkness settle in slowly and not letting the beauty be devoured so soon. Yugi found the scene strangely comforting.

Amath turned the full weight of his crystal blue eyes upon Yugi as he handed the reins over to Mokuba.

"Don't look at me like that." Yugi mumbled, raising a hand to stroke the horse's neck gently. "You know I can't bring you with me. It's far too dangerous, I'm going to face the Black King for crying out loud!"

Amath snorted in protest, pawing the ground with his hoof.

"No." Yugi said firmly. "The last thing I want is for you to get hurt. You'll be safer here with Mokuba, and besides, the others need to look up to you when this whole thing goes down. They will be frightened, and they'll need a strong and courageous leader to calm them."

The horse's stance softened and he turned to look back at the others, his companions. Yugi caught his head and kissed him softly on his nose. "I'll be fine, I promise."

Amath nodded his great head in reluctant acceptance. He nosed Yugi gently in the stomach, and Yugi put his arms around Amath's head and hugged him goodbye.

He could feel those twin points of crystal following him sadly all the way to the castle gates.


	8. Futago

Yugi slipped into the castle just as the last rays of light were pulling their long fingers back across the mountains. His home was dead silent, and Yugi instantly was on the alert. It was the kind of silence that resented visitors, the kind of thick hush that told him something was wrong.

He crept along the halls, his footfalls sounding soft as whispers and his ears straining to catch any sound. He was making his way to his bedroom, thinking to grab the dagger he suddenly remembered he had in his desk drawer.

He had just put a hand on the doorknob when another hand clapped him on the shoulder and spun him around. He jumped in shock, whirling around to come face to face with the king.

He almost smiled in relief before he noticed the dark scowl staining his father's face. Without a word, Joey grabbed him by the forearm and started off down the hallway, roughly tugging him along.

"Joey?" Yugi asked timidly, his voice small. Joey said nothing, his face set in a hard expression. Yugi fell silent, dropping his eyes to the floor guiltily. He felt the waves of dissapointment rolling off of the king's form as they continued down the hall, and he had a sinking suspicion that he was the source. A few more minutes of tense silence and they rounded the same corner that Yugi had come from only a moment ago, the one that led to the outdoors. Still saying nothing, the king wrenched the doors open and marched outside. He did not look back nor slow his pace, but Yugi knew better than to try and get away. Following would be his best bet.

They walked along the perimiter of the castle in the dark, and Yugi kept his eyes on the ground as much to avoid looking at his father than to watch for loose rocks he could stumble on. After what seemed like an eternity of guilt-laden silence, Joey stopped. Yugi jerked to a halt before he ran into him, and finally managed to find the courage to look up.

Joey was watching the moon with a solemn and serene look on his face. They were in front of a pool that was as still as ice in the cool air. Yugi waited for a moment before he could take it no longer and he whispered.

"Dad?" He murmured, trying to smooth any rough feelings. Joey turned to face him, putting the moon at his back so that his face was shadowed. He opened his mouth, and Yugi flinched, expecting him to yell.

"When were you planning on telling me that you were going to actually _fight_ the Black King?" Joey whispered, his voice so much sadder than Yugi expected it to be. He had expected Joey to be angry, he had expected him to shout. He could have stood against the wave of anger, but when he felt the remorse and the pain in his voice, he could not hold up his defenses. His eyes fell to the ground again.

"I'm sorry." He mumbled. "I didn't want you to worry! I thought I should just take care of it myself, so that you didn't have to... I'm sorry..."

He didn't see it, but Joey's shoulders slumped and his face softened when he realized that his harsh demeanor was hurting Yugi. He dropped to his knees and reached out to pull Yugi close to him, tears begining to gather in his chocolate coloured eyes.

"No... I am the one who should be sorry. Forgive your old father Yugi, I am just scared. It was bad enough when I thought I might lose Serenity to this evil beast, but at least then I knew I might have a chance to save her. But now, with you not only taking her place, but fighting the monster head on...! I fear that I may never see you again." He sobbed, clutching the boy close to him protectively, as if he could press Yugi into his very soul and keep him safe.

Yugi gently returned the embrace, trying to impart some comfort into Joey's trembling form.

"It's okay Jo... Dad." He whispered, patting his back. "Please, don't worry, Bakura and Duke and I have it all planned out. The army will be ready by tomorrow night, and when the monster comes it will find a maw full of flaming arrows before it tastes of human flesh. I may not even have to face the creature at all!" He tried to be soothing, but secretly Kaiba's earlier words were still bouncing in his skull. 'Swords will do no good against the beast, else the armies would have finished it by now.'

"I promise I'll be okay."

Joey finally pulled away, putting one hand on his son's cheek, his eyes sparkling in the moonlight.

"As furious as I am that you went behind my back, you cannot fathom the depth of my pride for you at this moment." He said, his voice thick. "I trust your skills and your ability to think about a situation before you run blindly into it. It is simply my concern as a father that is making me behave so. Forgive me."

"Of course." Yugi smiled, feeling as though a weight had lifted from his chest. He pushed Joey's shoulder lightly. "I always knew you were a big softy at heart." He teased.

Joey smirked incredilously. "A softy, am I?" He growled lightly. "Your father is the most feared warrior in all the realms! See just how _soft_ this thunderstorm can be!"

And with that, he suddenly lunged forward and took Yugi right off his feet. They fell over backwards, rolling on the grass in a wild tussle. And then, with a yelp and a big splash, the suddenly found themselves waist deep in the pool.

Joey came up sputtering and wiping mud from his mouth. Yugi laughed and splashed him to clear it off, but he only succeded in getting water in Joey's eyes. Blind, he smacked the water forcefully and sent up a shower of droplets that rained on Yugi like cold needles.

They carried on like that for a while, splashing and laughing and dunking each other under the water playfully. When they both were exhausted and shivering terribly, Joey finally hauled Yugi out of the water with a wide grin, and they headed back home with all of the negativity effectively washed away.

Mai was startled by soft knock on her door late in the night, and when she opened it she found her dripping wet husband carrying an equally soaked and sleeping Yugi on his back.

"Look at you two! What on earth have you been doing?" She scolded, taking her son in her arms and wrapping him in a thick towel.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Joey said solemnly. "There was this great big wolf, with fangs the size of daggers and..." He ranted on and on, drawing an elaborate picture with his hands as he followed Mai around the room.

She patiently listened as she helped Yugi out of his sopping wet attire and into some soft and fluffy nightclothes, trying her best to hide her smile so as not to encourage Joey.

"And the only thing we could think of was to lure it to the water where it's heavy jewels and great big teeth would weight it down and... and... uh..." He trailed off as Mai turned one lavender eye on him, the weight of which caused him to completely forget the lie he had just concocted.

Satisfied that he would try that again any time soon, Mai tossed him his own nightcloth and carried Yugi to the bed. Joey smiled sheepishly and followed after.

"He's too big to sleep with us anymore." He protested in a whisper, eyeing the small portion of the bed left to him. "I'll wake up on the floor!"

"Oh, hush." Mai replied, turning a gentle smile on her son and stroking his hair softly. "Let me have one more night with my little angel."

Joey could not hold out against the logic. He was suddenly hit with the realization that this could be their last time together for a while.

Without another word he slipped into bed, wrapped his arms around his wife and his child, and held them close as they all drifted off into a deep and contented sleep.

Deep beneath the castle, in a place of unspeakable filth and eternal darkness, was a cell. And in that cell, barred safely behind thick iron and solid stone, lay a single man. A pathetic creature, he seemed, lying with his head in the muck and looking as though he was fast asleep. And so he would be, were it not for the sudden tingling in his blood that kept all thoughts of sleep far from his mind. There was no light in this place, a fitting punishment for those whose deeds were often performed in darkness, yet his eyes were glowing as fiercely as though twin suns had lit within their dark depths. He rose on shaky feet, his slime and mud coated hair falling thick around his shoulders, its white hue no longer resembling any color of the sort. His tattered and worn clothing alternately clung to him wetly and floated free of his body, letting no heat stay with him for more than a moment.

He was sickly and thin, a weak creature, likely to die before his execution. But he wore a grin, nay, a fully blossomed, wicked smile, that belied all of these premature assumptions that people made and twisted them into fearful speculations.

This was the highest security prison cell in all of the castle. He was kept separate from the other prisoners, for fear that he would rouse them from their lethargic state into a more dangerous and desirous people. More than twenty armed guards swarmed around the dungeon, any one of them able to stand against a prisoner without any trouble at all.

Yet still he smiled, as the tingles grew to a completely raging blaze within him, a feeling that warmed him from the inside out. He breathed deeply as this surge of old and familiar power coursed through him. He nearly laughed aloud, and indeed, he had to bite his lip to stop from crying out in sheer joy.

The king had erred. The full moon peaked tonight.

The guard stationed by the entrance to the dungeon yawned widely and slumped against the wall. Nothing exciting ever happened in this corner of the castle, even though only the most dangerous criminals were imprisoned here. He yawned again and shook his head, trying desperately to stay alert. But seconds later his head drooped onto his chest and a soft snore began to sound from the weary guard.

When the thunderous crash sounded from the entryway he jerked to startled awareness, blinking the mist from his eyes and instantly standing upright with his weapon drawn. He hesitated only a split second, trying to see beyond his blurry eyes, trying to distinguish the true form of the dark black blot coming at him. A split second was far too long against the likes of Yami Bakura. Before he could raise his weapon to strike down the escapee, before he could even shout for help, Bakura raised his hand and shot a glowing black ball at the confused guard.

The orb crackled with dark energy as it hit the man square in the chest. His armor rusted before his very eyes as the ball burrowed its way under the rapidly dulling metal, and he screamed and thrashed wildly, trying to dislodge the wicked thing. But the orb continued relentlessly, eventually breaking right through the armor and burrowing deeper into living flesh.

Bakura watched in satisfaction as the spell completed its gruesome work, leaving the pleasurable sounds of pain-filled screams ringing in his ears. The empty shell of the former guard fell to the floor and broke apart, spilling dust and bones across the stone.

"The servants are going to have a wondrous time cleaning that up." He chuckled to himself, as he came to the top of the stairs and stretched. Shouts erupted all along the corridor as the echoes of the crashing armor resounded down the halls. Bakura did not fear the alarm being raised, (he felt as though he could stand against the entire army without so much as breaking a sweat on his ivory skin!) but he knew that it would be better if the guards were sent as far away from the castle as was possible. He smirked as he looked at the dusty remains of the corpse lying at his feet.

"You might yet still prove of use to me, my friend." He murmured, bending to don the suit the dead guard had been wearing. There was nothing he could do about the scorch marks on the front of the breastplate, but, if he did things just right then there may not be a need to hide it anyway. With a quick tug he pulled a hanging, finely woven tapestry from the wall and covered the bones.

When the soldiers rushed around the corner to find their fallen comrade, they went to him without a second thought.

"Neal!" One man yelled, sprinting forward to the fallen man. "Neal, what happened? Speak to me!"

"The... prisoner." Bakura gasped from behind the helm, clutching at the scorched hole in the armor as though it was a mortal wound. The visor covered his eyes, so that no one could tell the difference between he and this Neal person. He quietly and discreetly bit one of his own lips with his sharp teeth, letting a trickle of blood run from his mouth.

"He... escaped! Must... go after him. He's headed for the gates... quickly!"

At his words, the whole group sprang to action. Except the man that had knelt beside Bakura, he stayed right where he was. Bakura growled in inner frustration, thinking he would have to kill this man too. More clues to leave behind.

But just before he moved, the leader came back and tugged on his shoulder.

"Come on, just leave him! We need your sword arm out there!"

The man shoved his hand away. "I'm not leaving my brother behind!" He shouted furiously, crouching protectively in front of Bakura.

"We'll get the healers and have him taken to the east wing. But there is nothing you can do for him now except catch the foul creature that did this to him!"

The man looked truly torn, but he understood his duty. He stood and faced Bakura, tears rimming his eyes. "I'll be right back." He promised fervently. And then he and the leader took off after their troops.

"Fool." Bakura muttered, nearly applauding at the irony of it all.

He got to his feet and discarded the heavy suit. He would not need it anyway, and the loud and rattling thing would only slow him down. He smiled when he thought of the confusion and the pain that the guard's family would be in when Neal was suddenly discovered missing. He laughed softly to himself as he pictured the looks on their faces when they finally discovered the bones.

Then he melted into the shadows, going the opposite direction of the guards he had sent off. He fled into the darkness silently, his eager breathing the only sound that indicated he was even there.

Tristan strolled along the well worn path up to the castle, his thoughts tumbling askew. He was donned in nothing more than casual attire, for he enjoyed the feeling of the wind rustling through the light cloth much more than the heavy weight of the burdensome armor. He walked lightly, and seemingly without any destination in mind. But gradually he came to the very edge of the castle, as he always did.

He looked up, far up, to the darkened window that shone as black as ebony in the night. His heart ached at the sight, for he knew who dwelt behind that silent glass.

The princess, Serenity. The one who made his blood burn more strongly than the brightest of suns. The one who could lift the troubles from his back with a smile as easily as a giant could hoist a boulder.

He sighed and bent to pluck a delicate flower from the cold ground. He twirled the stem between his fingers absently, still staring up at the window. He shouldn't love her. He couldn't love her. She was a princess, a fair maiden of unspeakable beauty and kindness and he, well, he was no more than a lowly soldier. Captain, perhaps, but soldier nonetheless.

He sighed again and tossed the flower to the ground. It was hopeless. This was a love that would never work, and it was more than likely that she did not return his feelings. She would want someone rich, someone able to look after her and keep her safe behind thick walls. Tristan could give her none of the luxuries she was so used to having, he could not shower her with gifts and fancy linens and precious jewels. All he could give her was love, plain and simple.

He suddenly stooped once more and picked up the tiny flower gently, stroking the soft pink petals with an unreadable expression.

But, was that such a bad thing? Perhaps he could make her see that he would love her with all of his heart, and that together they could make a new life.

But then, he couldn't know if she even loved him back, they hardly ever saw each other...

_That's it._ He decided. _I'll go to the king tomorrow and ask his permission to court the princess. If he deems me worthy, then I will happily try and woo her._

He smiled and pinned the flower the the collar of his shirt, inhaling its sweet scent. And then he turned to begin heading back home.

The far off shouts of distressed men stopped him dead in his tracks. The royal guard.

He took off, sprinting over to the gates.

"What's going on?" He demanded, as a group of twenty or so soldiers rushed out the doors.

"The prisoner has escaped!" The leader said to him, panting. "We're chasing him down!"

"Which prisoner?" Tristan questioned, fearing the answer. The man's answering look told him enough.

"Wait!" He shouted, as Tristan ran past him and back into the castle. "He went the other way!"

Tristan ignored him, his heart was telling him otherwise. He flew down corridors with wild abandon, heading for the princess's room. He stopped before he got there though, seeing a shadowy form creeping its way down the hall.

"Halt!" He roared, springing forward. To his surprise, the shadow did not flee, but rather turned to face him. Weaponless, now seriously regretting the fact that he had left his blade behind, he settled for the next best thing and grabbed a hold of the prisoner around the throat; slaming him against the wall.

He felt the breath blast out of his body with a dull whoosh. "Speak heathen, on your life. Who are you and what are you doing here?"

He received a slightly forced laugh in response. "I was about to ask you the same thing." The shadow chuckled, grunting a bit when Tristan pressed him farther into the wall.

"Back to the cell with you." He snarled.

"I suppose you expect me to come quietly? Well I refuse, but you won't." He said mysteriously. And then he suddenly reached back and clamped his long, slender hands around Tristan's neck, choking him and making him release his hold. As soon as Bakura could face him properly, he raised Tristan off of the floor with one arm and shook him violently.

"I could always use a pawn who knows his way around the castle!" He laughed once more, tightening his hold. Tristan flailed against the grip wildly, trying to breathe. And then suddenly, he felt himself growing terribly cold. He looked down in time to see shadows trailing up Bakura's arm and worming their way up to his body. He fought stubbornly against their intrusions, a heroic act in and of itself, but soon he could stand no longer against them. He succumbed to the growing blackness in his thoughts with princess Serenity's face still in his mind...

****

It was not the sound that woke him. It was the absence of sound, the sudden halt of soothing noises that had surrounded him all night. Yugi opened his eyes to see his mother lying on her side away from him, limp. Alarmed, somehow knowing that she was more than just sleeping, her felt for her pulse. It was weak, and her breathing was frail, but she was alive at least. Only unconscious. She had strange bruises on the sides of her neck, it looked like someone had tried to strangle her!

Yugi looked around wildly, just in time to see a cloth covered hand come flying for his face. He jerked as the hand covered his mouth and nose, and he inhaled a mouthful of bitter tasting powder before he could stop himself. Instantly his eyelids drooped, but not before he caught sight of Tristan holding an unconscious Joey under his arm, his eyes completely blank and staring. Yugi's eyes flicked to the face of the man that was drugging him, and they widened in shock.

_Bakura? But why?_ Yugi thought as he struggled, but he could not fight Bakura's grip.

A deep darkness reared up from within him and completely covered his eyes, though he sensed they remained open. He sunk into the darkness as icy cold fear ate at his heart.

No one saw the shadow slip away from the side of the castle, carrying a huge sack over his shoulder. No one would have questioned him if they had. Bakura was trusted by the people, and thus his business was his alone. Anyone close enough to him, however, might have been curious to note his hunched stride, or the way the shadows clung to him like a second cloak. And someone who had happened to come from the castle, perhaps the same person who had bid goodnight to him only moments before, might have been highly alarmed to see his doppelganger sneaking away.

But no one saw, and so the thief was quite safe.

As for his stolen goods, well, the prince would not awaken for quite some time.

Just long enough for his deal with the Black King to be completed.


	9. A Deal with Darkness

It was at the very moment that the first pure white beams spilled into the heart of the volcano, that he awakened. It was at the exact second that the light touched his poison-black scales that his crimson eyes snapped open and dilated. Orbs filled with hatred and malice peered at his lonely prison for the first time in one hundred years, but his gaze did not linger here, he had seen the inside of this pitch black dungeon far too many times for his liking. He craned his long neck up to glare at the spot of light that the moon was peering into.

The opening to the great mountain was coated in a thin shroud of black mist that was only visible when the moon was directly overhead, as it was this night. But as the the Black King watched, the cloud suddenly _shifted_, as though it had blinked. And then, slowly, it faded. He would have until the last sliver of moonlight disappeared over the lip of the hole to return.

With an earthshaking roar he jumped, spreading his wings out partially. The tunnel was not wide enough for him to spread to full wingspan. Instead, he caught himself on the stone at the peak of his leap, and began to climb.

His muscles pulled mightily, and because he had been storing energy for the last hundred years he easily made the rim in a matter of moments. As he perched upon the tip of his prison, he roared again, sending his fury across the land. Then he finally spread his wings to their fullest, standing tall and proud as the moon shone above him and made his scales ripple like liquid night. And then he dropped like an onyx star, snapping his wings open and pulling back into the sky. It was midnight, the appointed hour. His servant should be ready.

Bakura scanned the skies impatiently, waiting. He was not kept for very long, soon enough he spotted a great black blot speeding towards him. No, black was not right. It was deeper than black, more than black. It swallowed up the stars as it came, anti-matter with wings.

As the Black King descended, Bakura held out the sack and dropped it roughly to the ground. A muffled moan sounded from within it.

The dragon landed with a heavy thud and a spray of dirt, towering over Bakura impressively. Bakura stood his ground.

_Greetings, Vile One_. Bakura called with his mind. _It has been long since last we talked._

"Tell me, human, how is it that you learned to speak in the mind's tongue?" The dragon rumbled, deep and dangerous. "Only a handful of powerful magi have attempted it in all the years I have lived. How is it you contacted me so easily?"

"My ancestor was the evil one that went in search of the stone." Bakura answered aloud, still holding his confident and somewhat arrogant posture. "Though it is true that he abused the power of the stone, he also managed to wrest some secrets away from it before they were both destroyed. Secrets that he passed to my grandfather, to my father, to me." He sneered. "Those fools did not understand the power they could have had, but I do."

He casually raised his hand, letting a hot orange flame dance on his fingertips. The dragon seemed unimpressed.

"You think you can fight through an entire castle with that puny fire?" He scoffed. "You would be hard pressed to even warm your own hands with such a meager force."

Bakura scowled, but he was careful to keep his tone calm, level. The Black King was not to be trifled with.

"Ah, but that is why I contacted you. You have lived since the dawn of time and longer, yet never do you seem to age. If I could take in but a fraction of your powers, it would be enough to ensure that Death himself cannot take me from the throne of this kingdom. And I have no need to fear the army standing against me. Even now my minion is within their ranks, poisoning all those he touches and converting them to my will. Within the night the whole army will belong to me!"

The Black King sat back and considered the words. When Bakura had first spoken with him all those years ago, via a mental call carried on the winds, the dragon had thought the human delusional. He had spoken of a conquest that would take place in the dark of the night, a conspiracy that would end the current royal bloodline and allow this man to reign forever more. Deep in slumber at the time, the dragon had been wickedly pleased with the thought of a new, everlasting rulership, but he had never thought that a mere mortal, a mere _human_ mortal, could have ever made it this far. Yet already his plan was nearly complete, all that he required now was enough of the dragon's power to keep him immune to the bite of aging.

And the promise he offered in return, the promise of freedom from the curse, was too tempting an offer to pass up. And besides, if the fool failed, then he could always devour him when next he was released.

"Have you my payment?" The dragon thundered, apparently satisfied.

"Ever you were the doubting sort. It is here." He kicked at the sack. "As promised. And this ugly little princess has enough purity to keep you satisfied for thousands of years to come."

The dragon narrowed his burning eyes, fixing Bakura with a laser-like stare. Bakura knew better than to make such a claim flippantly; for to give less than promised would spell his death.

"No small feat." He breathed. "Very well. As it was?"

"Indeed. You keep to the mountains until I can find a way to break the spell that cursed prince placed upon you. In the meantime, I will wrest the throne away from its current unworthy wielder and station myself here. I swear you shall rise again before another hundred years has passed."

"For your sake, human, I certainly hope so." The dragon sneered, showing huge fangs. "I am not merciful in the face of failure."

Bakura paled a bit when the Black King snorted and slowly licked his lips. "Royalty or not, with all of your magic power you would make a fine meal indeed."

Laughing humorlessly at his discomfort, the Black King placed the tip of one claw against Bakura's forehead and began chanting in an old an dragonic tongue.

The spell took most of the night to complete, the moon had trekked far across the sky before the dragon's cries reached a crescendo.

The spell peaked and climaxed as the dragon roared again, a giant pillar of white fire erupting from his jaws and completely swallowing Bakura. The blaze went on for many moments, gradually growing fainter and duller until it no longer looked like fire. Instead, it seemed that wisps of pure energy were being pulled from the dragon's mouth.

When it was completed, Bakura had changed utterly. The dragon's powers had done more than simply infuse him with strength. He was dressed in fine clothing and he was clean shaven, standing tall and proud. He laughed exultantly, and the Black King let him bask in the power for a moment. Then he again fixed his gaze on the man.

"Do not fail me." He said simply, cowing Bakura once more. Appeased, the dragon took the sack in his claws and took flight, heading back toward his mountain home with all haste, already savoring the thought of his meal.

And thus did the wheels of the prophesy begin to turn.

_Thump... thump... thump... thump thump... _

Every beat shivered through his body like the pounding of a drum. _Thump_.

He jerked every time that same sound pulsed through him. Rise, fall, rise, fall.

Yugi spent a long moment indeed trying to figure out this strange predicament. His eyes were open, yet he could see nothing at all. Well, that was not entirely true. If he squinted hard enough, he could just make out the rough, grainy texture of the sack he was not yet aware he was in. He was bent nearly double, his head pushed forward uncomfortably, making his neck ache with a fiery vengeance. The rest of his body followed the curve of his small container, making his legs stick up past his head rather awkwardly. He struggled for a moment, trying to relieve some of the stress on his neck before it snapped. He somehow managed to turn himself around in the tiny space somewhat, so that his head was higher than his feet at least. He had the unnerving sensation that he was... floating? Not that wasn't it. Not in water at least.

Trying to stave off the growing panic he felt deep in his belly, he began to try and rationalize what was going on. He reached out and touched the bag, feeling the itchy fabric. It was very cold. So he was either far below ground, deep beneath the castle or, judging by the way he was swaying gently, very, very high up.

A sudden mental flash of Bakura's sneering face entered his thoughts, the last thing his eyes had actually registered.

"Oh no." Yugi whispered, all the blood draining from his face. He had to use every bit of his concentration not to empty the contents of his stomach right there. Given the cramped, hot, and tiny little enclosure, he was sure that was one reflex he would regret having soon enough.

Swallowing the acidic bile clawing its way up his throat, he sighed and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He briefly entertained the idea of cutting himself free, but that was dismissed when one, he realized that if he was correct in his guess then he was likely a few hundred feet in the air, and two, he never did have the chance to grab his dagger. The most he could do now, was wait, and see what hand fate was going to deal him.

He must have fallen asleep again, for though he was terrified, the rhythmic sound of heavy wing strokes lulled him into a state of complacency. That, coupled with the fact that he absolutely refused to think about what could be making said wing strokes, and the only way he could think of to _stop_ thinking, was to sleep.

When he awoke again, his back was scraping painfully against a rough stone wall. The dragon was lowering itself back into the cave slowly, and it needed to shift the sack from its claws to its teeth so it could grip the stone. If it was possible, the darkness grew even darker as they descended. Yugi began breathing faster again, there was nothing he could do to stop it. His thoughts began to scramble around in his head again, running around like sugar crazed chibis. They bounced in his skull with no signs of stopping.

_This is it, oh Ra I'm going to die. Joey must have made a mistake, the full moon doesn't rise tomorrow, it rose _today... _I'm going to get eaten by the Black King, and then who knows what will happen? _

Then everything stopped. The only sound was the great bellowing whoosh of air as the beast breathed. Yugi could've sworn that his heart was about to jump out of his chest. The sack suddenly shifted around him, turning upside down and dumping him out onto the cave floor. He tumbled in a complete somersault, winding up on his back in front of the biggest, blackest, _scariest_ looking dragon he had ever seen.

Yugi had never seen a dragon like this before. Besides in pictures and artworks, but that didn't count. He remembered the one time he had taken Yami to the museum to see the some paintings of dragons and other fantasy works. Even the most vivid, stunning, and _real_ painting they had seen paled in comparison to the real thing.

No matter that he was the Black King, no matter that he was likely going to swallow him without hardly a chew. This dragon, even though it was about to devour him, was beautiful. And though Yugi was not very good at interpreting dragonic facial expressions, he could tell that this one was shocked.

Yugi couldn't tell if he was amused by this development, or even more scared than before. Shock meant that the dragon was surprised, which likely meant that it was unhappy.

His cloak suddenly whipped up in front of his face as he inhaled a great breath.

"A prince." The dragon rumbled, and even though it was scarcely a whisper by dragon standards, the noise echoed painfully back to Yugi's ears.

"A prince." He repeated, a definite note of ire creeping into its voice.

And then, with a flurry of movement, and a loud and painful boom, Yugi suddenly found himself pinned to the wall by the beast's rough black snout. The rock ground into his back painfully, leaving dark bruises, and the beast's crimson eyes tearing through him.

"A PRINCE!" Roared the Black King, a roar that shook the cave to its foundations and beyond. He reared back and looked at the narrow opening far above them, where the moonlight was rapidly fading.

"No!" The Black King snapped his wings open and launched himself into the air, ignoring the rocks that bit at the thin membrane. He raced with all the speed of an arrow, but the last sliver of moon fled from the sky before he could get there. The dragon hit the barrier with a bang that sounded as loud as thunder. Two seconds later the cave shook even harder as the dragon's great bulk hit the cave floor.

When the dust finally settled, the dragon lay unmoving. But Yugi did not dare move, for he was still breathing. When he shifted slightly, the dragon got to his feet and spun around faster than Yugi would have thought possible considering that he had just slammed his head into an unyielding barrier. The look in his eyes had Yugi up and running before he realized he had no idea where he was supposed to go.

He was plucked right up from the ground and brought up before the dragon's face, squirming futilely.

"You cannot work your magic upon me if you are dead!" The dragon snarled, opening his maw. Yugi couldn't move, terror freezing him in place. Hot breath rushed up at him, and he nearly swooned when he foolishly looked down to see his feet hanging precariously over the beast's waiting jaws.

_The stone! Use the stone! _Screamed a voice. Yugi unconsciously grabbed at the necklace, wondering what he should do.

_Yugi! Use it!_

So he did the first thing that came to his mind, and he chucked the tiny gem into the dragon's cavernous mouth.

The Black King choked and dropped him, but fortunately Yugi's cloak snagged on a jutting rock and he stopped. He was afforded a fine view of what happened next.

The dragon flailed around wildly, making these awful choking sounds and thrashing into the walls. A white light was shining _through_ his scales, pinpointing the spot where the gemstone was lodged.

Yugi watched with wide eyes as the dragon collapsed, his breath wheezing out in a long sigh. The light flickered out, leaving the room in pitch blackness once again.

_Not exactly what I had in mind, but effective nonetheless._ Said the voice. Yugi jumped and looked around.

"Who are you?" He called. "And... where are you?"

_I am in the stone you just so kindly dropped down the Black King's gullet. And it's rather nasty in here, so would you be so kind as to get me out?_


	10. Last Prince

"I'd love too, just let me... Um..." Yugi wiggled, trying to reach back to where his cloak was snagged. But as he reached, one of the tears began to rip.

"Wait, wait!" Yugi pleaded, but gravity wasn't listening. With a heavy thump and a crash, he tumbled down the wall and earned himself yet another scratch.

"What a mess I must appear." He mused, running a hand through his hair.

_Hate to break it to you, but you're not getting any cleaner anytime soon. _The voice continued softly. _As disgusting as this is going to sound, you seriously can't leave me here. If I fall... Well, you'd just better not let me fall!_

"Well, what do you propose I do? I wouldn't have thrown the stone if I'd thought someone was actually _in_ it."

_Well technically I'm not really _in_ the stone. I'm communicating through it. _

"Then where _are_ you?" Yugi said, exasperated. He was tired. It was nearly dawn, but getting kidnapped by an evil twin and carried away and nearly devoured by a dragon was beginning to take its toll on the young teen.

_Look, I'll explain everything to you, but you seriously need to get the stone. Before I- he-actually wakes up would be better._

"But how? I can't just..." Sudden mental images flooded his thoughts, images he was sure were inspired by the voice in the stone.

"No." Yugi gasped, horrified. "No way! That's disgusting, I'm not going to and you sure as heck can't make me!"

_Yugi..._ the voice sighed, but he would hear none of it.

"Forget it." He shuddered, his next words coming out as a squeak. "What if it wakes up when I'm..."

_He's out cold right now Yugi. Please, you need to do this. Please._

"No. No, no, no, no, absolutely not!"

He wasn't exactly sure when he started moving, but he was fairly certain that it was not of his own volition. With every fervent and emphatic 'no' that escaped his lips he took another step towards the unconscious creature.

"I can't. I won't! You're crazy!" He shouted to no one in particular. The voice came back quickly.

_Shh, you don't want him to wake up! He's going to be ticked enough when he does. _

"So why don't I just let him slumber on for a while? If I'm lucky he'll wake up long after I'm dead and gone."

The voice took longer to respond this time. _You don't really mean that._

"Oh yeah?" Yugi challenged, but he backed off right away. "No, you're right. I'm just so exhausted, its making me a little snappy."

He sighed heavily, examining the slumbering dragon. His tone was no longer as heavily opposed to this idea, provided that he, again, did not think about it. He looked at the dragon curiously, wondering how he was going to get in.

"Um..."

_Here, let me._

The dragon's mouth opened slowly, teeth that were way too long to fit inside slowly extending to leer down at him like stalactites. Jagged daggers rose up to block him from below.

Yugi gulped fearfully, and immediately wished he hadn't. Such an action did not fuel pleasant thoughts when staring into the maw of a creature that could eat you and had tried to eat you in the past.

"How did you do that?" Yugi whispered.

_Nevermind that now. Just hurry. I can't keep it up for much longer._

As if to emphasize the point, the dragon's jaw slipped down a bit. The stone started to glow again gently, so that Yugi could see.

Inhaling a quick breath of clean air, Yugi tentatively stepped into the Black King's mouth... and promptly slipped on his tongue. Down he went, landing with a wet and squishy squelch. Thoroughly disgusted, and too revolted to be scared anymore, Yugi tried to hoist himself to his feet again.

His boots could find no purchase on the slick surface, and down he went again.

"This. Is. So. Gross." Yugi mumbled, his voice echoing eerily.

And then, without any warning whatsoever, the tongue underneath him bucked violently, and he was pitched forward, toward the opening to oblivion. Scrambling to find a hold of some sort, he reached out and hooked his arm around a large tooth. A wave of slime washed over him, but fortunately he managed to keep his mouth closed. Sputtering in disgust, he put his head down and sighed.

"I can't do this."

_You're almost there. Please, don't give up now. The fate of the world will hang in the balance._

"Yeah right." Yugi mumbled, beginning to inch forwards again.

_I speak the truth. If you do not retrieve the stone, then the kingdom will fall._

Hesitant, but now realizing that the stone could be right, Yugi gently reached his hand around the bend of the dragon's throat while keeping a firm grip on the tooth.

_Lower. A bit more, more, come on, you're so close!_

"Got it!" Yugi yelled triumphantly, pulling a very wet and smelly gemstone up by the end of its chain.

The whole cavern trembled, and Yugi's hair waved in the sudden breeze. The dragon's breath hitched and trembled again, and Yugi paled visibly.

"You've got to be kidding me!" He yelled, gripping the tooth as hard as he could.

The force of the sneeze expelled him violently anyway. He hit the chamber wall with a soft thump, entertaining a brand new bruise. But he had the stone.

_Well done. _The voice congratulated him. _I knew you could do it._

"Well, that made one of us, at least." Yugi replied, smiling tiredly. He held up the gemstone before his eyes, searching its flawless (if a bit dirty) surface.

"Now, _who_ are you?" He asked again.

_I... listen, I know I said I would explain, but I can't just yet. I need you to trust me for just a little while longer._

Somehow, Yugi was not the least bit surprised. "How did I guess?" He mumbled sarcastically.

_I'm sorry._

"Whatever, I'm to tired to care right now anyway." He wiped some of the spit off of his clothes and tried to find a dry spot to curl up and just ignore the world. But just then the dragon snorted and blinked, raising its huge head from the floor.

_No time to rest yet Yugi,_ _You need to move fast. And repeat _exactly_ what I say, alright? And no matter what happens, please don't lose the stone._

"No guarantees." Yugi murmured, tensing weary muscles and preparing to spring to the side. The dragon shook its head blearily as it continued to rise, and eventually its eyes found Yugi again.

_Ready... _Yugi crouched, not blinking. _Ready..._

The Black King suddenly lunged, wisely keeping its mouth closed this time.

_Now! _ Yugi dodged to the side right before the blow fell, the blow that would have killed him.

He tucked into a roll as he sprang away, putting even more distance between he and the thrashing beast. But he had no where to go, nowhere to hide, and the dragon was done fooling around. It began to suck in another breath, this one making a light swell between its jaws.

_This is not good. You've got to get out of there. _The voice commanded, concern ringing behind the words.

"It's not like I _can_ go anywhere, now is it? Yugi answered, unable to wrench his gaze away from the spectacle of the dragon's growing power.

_Speak these words, quickly. And don't ask questions, now is not the time!_

The voice then proceeded to mumble a string of words that sounded as gibberish to Yugi.

"What? I can't speak like that!"

_You must! _The voice commanded, and then repeated the chant, slowly so Yugi could catch it all.

_'Abec d'ul toren isis mon vhen'. _

"A-abec..." Yugi stammered, unable to concentrate with the dragon's maw barely ten strides away, and the fire in its belly growing fast. "Abec d'ul tor... d'ul toren..."

_Isis mon vhen. Isis. Mon. Vhen. _

The Black King reared back, ready to let loose his fire and burn the prince to no more than a scorch mark upon his floor.

"Isis mon vhen!" He screamed, falling to the floor in terror. The fire surged around him, red hot and dangerous. But it did not burn! He looked at himself in awe. The fire never came close to his skin, it was like he was incased in an invisible, protective shell. The gemstone was glowing brightly, and seemed to be deflecting the fire away.

When the great beast finished, and it found Yugi was still standing, unharmed, it was shocked. Enraged ever further if that was possible.

_Quickly now, put on the necklace._

Without even hesitating, Yugi slipped the chain around his neck. And then, a surge of light erupted from behind his eyes, and he felt like he had been thrown backwards, though he did not move. Something seemed to catch him as he fell away from himself, and held him in place. He could feel his mouth moving of its own accord, his eyes flicking to meet the dragon's without his consent.

"If you do not wish to face your utter destruction, I would suggest that you stop trying to kill me." Yugi called, though the words did not form in his own mind before he spoke them. "I could kill you right now, for I am the Last Prince. And I'm sure you know what that means, you degenerate king. I can fulfill the prophecy."

If it was at all possible, the dragon actually paled. "You will die long before then." The dragon snarled.

"Only if you can catch me." Yugi replied with an unusual amount of confidence. Then he began to move, his legs sprinting him to the far side of the cavern without his direction or his consent. Yugi watched all of this happen with a very detached air.

Eventually he realized where he was headed: he was slipping around the limbs of the thrashing beast with an agility that surprised him. The dragon was thundering around the cave with a vengeance, trying to pin him against the wall, against the floor, anything to stop him from doing whatever it was he was doing. Yugi felt no fear course through him when a claw or tooth slashed the air above him, nearly taking his head from his shoulders. Though he himself was trembling, his body remained steady and strong. Like someone else was guiding him.

That theory was proven to be true just a second later. A glimmer of light shone at the very back of the small cavern. Moonlight glinted off of rippling water from a pool dug into the cavern floor, and without a second of hesitation or even thought to his actions, Yugi was flung into the black water.

The current that had been all but invisible under the surface of the still onyx water sucked him away instantly. A flood of tiny silver bubbles glinted in the fast fading moonlight, a testament to the small amount of air in his lungs. He careened down through the deep and dark tunnel at a breakneck pace, thinking every second that he was going to be slammed into the walls and have the rest of his air stolen. Already his lungs had begun to burn.

Yugi panicked, and his mouth snapped open, sucking water. Something from deep within himself, something stronger and calmer than he, closed his mouth again and gently soothed his blind panic. He found himself bound within his own mind. Not restrained, more like... embraced. Kept out of harm's way. Such a feeling was so very familiar to him...

And then it clicked, and he thought himself foolish for not realizing this before!

Suddenly he shot out of the underwater tunnel and tumbled head over heels into the lake at the base of the dormant volcano. He came up coughing and spluttering, grabbing air hungrily. He found he was in control of his limbs again, and so he swam for shore. With an exhausted huff and a spray of fine white sand, he flopped down on the ground and panted heavily, trying to breathe. He was so tired.

He pulled the gemstone in front of his face again.

"Show yourself." He commanded softly, no longer desiring a compromise.

A delicate mist surrounded him, swirling and converging, solidifying into the ethereal outline of a human. The mist swelled and took shape, a solid torso with arms that ended in slender fingers and legs that dissolved into tendrils of mist. His head came last, and he tilted it back and inhaled a deep breath, his eyes closed as though it was his first real breath of air in years. Which it more than likely was.

His eyes slowly opened as he lowered his head to meet Yugi's gaze, eyes that were filled with a gentleness and ferocity, wisdom and power.

He spoke no words. He did not have to.

_I knew it._ Yugi thought blearily, as exhaustion began to overtake him.

Before his very eyes, dressed in rich silk and fine linen, a small crown of pure gold resting atop his head and an elegant sword strapped to his waist, stood the First Prince.

Yami.


	11. Tainted Throne

**A.N. I suppose a hearty apology is in order! You must forgive me for taking so long to update. You know how it is, never enough free time as we would like to squeeze in all of the pointless crap we need to do. I pray that I can mend any rough feelings between us with a lenghty update, and perhaps even an ending to this long tale!**

Sometime later he awoke to the feeling of sunlight stroking his cheek. He opened his eyes and coughed, wiping the clinging sand from his lips. He raised himself on his hands and looked across the lake in disbelief, towards the mountain where the Black King was trapped.

_I... I did it._ He thought, dazed. _I got out._

He sat back on his heels, trying to process the revelation of his freedom. _And I didn't even have to really fight the demon. I just had to run away..._

That thought brought back the events of the previous night, and he looked around wildly, trying to see. Yami stood on the banks of the water, the wind passing right through him. His crown did not shine in the light, nor did his sword. He looked rather... sad, though his face was turned away from Yugi.

He stood up, thinking to speak but not wanting to interrupt the moment of quiet reflection. Yami sensed his movement and turned around.

Their eyes met, and something unseen passed between them. He was the First Prince... and only the First Prince. This was not over yet.

"What now?" Yugi asked, his voice rough from sleeping on the cold ground. Yami sighed.

"You must get back to your kingdom, Yugi." The spirit said, his voice echoing eerily. "Your people are in great danger."

"But the Black King is trapped!" Yugi protested, his hope sliding away in the blink of an eye. "We're safe for another hundred years!"

"The King is imprisoned, but his army remains. And they have a leader." Yami responded somberly.

"Bakura." Yugi groaned, suddenly understanding. "But why?"

"He is not the Bakura you know." Yami explained, his eyes shining dangerously. "That man is a creature of great darkness nearly as old as the Black King himself. Long has he sought after the power of the stone, but always it has eluded him."

"Why does he want the stone?" Yugi asked, perplexed. "The Black King has already been freed, what would he gain from..." He stopped, more lights clicking on in his head.

"He wants you."

"Yes. If he can manage to wrest the stone from you, and activate it's powers, then he can summon my soul from the stone and sacrifice it to break the curse I placed on the Black King. If he were to succeed, then I would be lost within the King's soul forever, and our combined powers would easily crush the current kingdom and allow Bakura to reign as king forevermore." He paused, thoughtful, his next words carrying the chilling tone of indifference. "Or at least until it decided to kill him."

"Then we have to stop him." Yugi determined, but then his face fell. "But how? I cannot stand against a whole army all alone."

Yami smiled for the first time, a look that banished Yugi's doubts and filled him with hope. "We are never alone Yugi." He beamed, extending his hand to Yugi and motioning for the stone. "You know that by now, surely?"

Yugi tossed him the jewel with hardly a thought, trusting him implicitly. Yami held it high and called upon its magic again.

"I summon thee, mine ancient companion of my reign as king! Awaken from thy slumber and aid your master, your friend, in his time of need. I call upon you: Dark Magician!"

The air all around them grew dark. The stone in Yami's hand seemed to suck the sunlight into it's clear depths, molding it and twisting it to its own will. A rich purple mist began to leak from the stone, falling like drops of water to form a small pool on the ground. As Yugi watched in wonder, the water churned and rose, hardening and forming a definite shape. From out of the pillar of dark water stepped the Dark Magician, his eyes glowing fiercely. As he came fully forth from the stone, a segment of mist detached itself from him and solidified into his trademark staff.

The Dark Magician bowed before Yugi, the tip of his weapon lowering to the ground.

"Greetings, my master. Many have the years been since last I looked upon your face." He said, straightening. Suddenly, he frowned, and his eyes narrowed.

"You are not my master." He said, his voice dangerously low. The staff swung threateningly round and pointed straight at Yugi's face. "Yet it was his voice that called me. Speak quickly if you value your soul, who are you? And why do you bear the semblance of the First Prince?"

Yugi held his arms out, wide and unthreatening. "My name is Yugi Moto, I am the Last Prince. You are correct, it was the First Prince that called you. He is here, standing beside me."

The Dark Magician looked perplexed. "I see him not. Yet you do not lie... I would have sensed it."

Yugi looked at Yami, who nodded and held up the stone once more. "Let the eyes of the past no longer be blinded. Show unto him the truth."

When the light faded again, the Dark Magician blinked and his eyes locked onto the shadowy form of Yami, his true master and friend. He gasped.

"Then it is true." He breathed. "We failed."

"Nay," Yami contradicted him. "The Black King was sealed within the stone. We succeeded, but so too, were we trapped. It would have remained that way forever if not for the one with the evil in his heart that released the dragon again unto the world."

Yugi just stood between them, hearing both sides of the conversation and yet not understanding a word.

"Then you have called to me to complete what we started all those years ago?" The Magician asked, and Yami nodded.

"This is the Last Prince," Yami explained, motioning to Yugi. "He shall fulfill the prophecy."

"The boy with two hearts." Dark Magician said reverently, placing a hand upon Yugi's brow. He sighed deeply. "Yes, he is the one. I feel it within my very soul. You must forgive me, Yugi," he whispered. "I did not know that it was the Last Prince before me. Forgive me my terrible manners."

The Magician smiled and dropped his hand. "When you serve as a guardian for so many long years you tend to become a little over protective I daresay."

A small smile graced Yami's face, but it was quickly replaced when the pressing situation settled once more. "There will be time for idle talk later." He said, stepping forward. "We need to get to the castle my friend, as soon as we can. We must be swift, but we must be silent. The throne is under a man who could and would easily stop us if he knew we were still alive. And I do not doubt that the Black King will warn him as soon as he finds a way to contact him." Yami suddenly grimaced, and put a hand over his translucent chest.

"The curses I placed upon the foul wyrm all those years ago are fading fast, I have not the strength to keep them up. If we do not hurry, the King could gather his energies and break right through the barrier. We can ill afford to let that happen."

"Leave the matter to me." The Dark Magician assured him. "I will see you safely to the castle."

He swung his staff around once again, halting it when it pointed upright, running two fingers up the smooth adamantine surface. Light began to flare from the precious gem set in the top, a light that engulfed them all and turned into a single, green beam. The light shot off, travelling toward the distant castle, toward the heart of the evil.

"Servant!" Bakura roared, his leg swung over the arm of the throne, precious gems and jewelry dangling from every conceivable angle. If he moved so much as an inch the whole hall rang with the sounds of his garish attire clinking together.

Joey stepped from behind the curtain slowly, holding a tray of exotic fruits on his fingertips and wearing an expression that would have made an ice demon freeze in its tracks.

"Oooh, if looks could kill." Bakura grinned, swinging his legs back over the throne and putting his hands on his knees. It was clear he was enjoying this. He lounged back in the chair, crossed one leg over the other and beckoned with his finger.

Joey resisted the urge to snarl at him. He was a king, a noble son, and he must not degrade himself in the arms of defeat. True humility would see him through.

Bakura reached out and yanked on the chain around the former king's neck, roughly jerking his head down so that they were eye to eye.

"An apple I think. Or a peach, perhaps." He smiled, showing off his fangs. "Something sweet to celebrate my victory."

Without flinching, never breaking eye contact, Joey reached to the tray and picked up a fat peach. He held the fruit to Bakura's lips, and the dark king tore through the soft flesh with sharp fangs, spraying juices into Joey face. He jerked back and wiped at his eyes with his wrist. Bakura only laughed and waved him away.

Joey retreated with a hard expression, back to his position at the entryway. His eyes gleamed from the shadows that covered his face when he stepped back behind the curtain.

"I am bored, captain." Bakura suddenly decided, emphasizing his announcement with a clap of his ringed hands. "Bring me my toys."

Tristan bowed with his same vacant eyed stare he had worn since the night before, walking over to the makeshift dungeon cell that was fashioned in the shape of a toybox. He unlocked the cell with a slender key and reached in to grab Mai by the forearm. Serenity clung to her and tried to call out to stop him.

"Please Tristan!" She called, desperately trying to get him back down to a reasonable level. "Please, think about what you're doing! This isn't like you!"

He ignored her, pulling Mai all the way out of the cell. Serenity came out with her, unwilling to leave her mother alone. They were both clad in rather uncomfortable clothing; revealing in all the places a woman's outfit should not be. All designed for the pleasure of the new king. Joey's mouth fell open and he started forward, but another guard deftly hooked his neck chain to the wall with a thick lock. Joey reached the end of his length and jerked back, choking. The fruit tray clattered to the floor, but Bakura seemed not to notice.

Tristan marched them both before Bakura and released them. They knew better than to flee, he had guards posted at every single entrance, and he had promised since the beginning that any that were caught trying to escape would be killed.

Or worse, watch the others be killed in their place.

"Dance." He commanded languidly, waving a hand lazily. Mai firmed her jaw and stood proud, fire shining in her eyes.

Fire flashed from Bakura's palm as he summoned up a whiplike tendril of white flame and cracked it toward Serenity. She cried out and ducked, feeling the intense heat nearly take her off her feet. Mai gasped and tried to run to her, but another crack of the whip stopped her in her tracks.

"Dance!" He roared loudly, daring her to defy him. She shot him a look that was filled with hatred, and slowly began to dance. Bakura sat back in his throne with a triumphant smirk. Serenity joined her, and they wove in and around each other, trying to speak without moving their lips.

"What shall we do?" Serenity whispered, twirling on her front foot and leaning forward, both arms extended behind her. Mai mirrored her movements, so that their faces were inches apart.

Knowing that Bakura was watching every move, she tried to whisper through her teeth. "Watch. The moment you see an opportunity to flee, take it."

"No talking!" Bakura snarled, raising the whip threateningly. They spun away, watching each other through the corners of their eyes. Mai knew just by the hard set of her expression that Serenity would not leave her, but she was determined to make her see reason. The tunnels throughout the castle were endless, and if Serenity could slip past any of the guards then she could lose them easily. She knew this castle, they would not. Not while their conscious will was dominated by Bakura's poisonous thoughts.

She had an idea, and she only hoped that Serenity shared her thoughts. Catching her gaze, Mai gave Serenity a small nod, a gesture which she returned in kind. Mai began to dance up the stairs to the throne, attempting to distract the vicious ruler.

It seemed to be working, Bakura's attention was fully upon her as she swayed and danced before him. Serenity eased back, working her way toward the great doors to the throne room.

But the opportunity of escape, if ever there truly was one, vanished as soon as he happened to catch sight of her sneaking away.

He flashed a wicked grin at Mai, and snapped his fingers. Tristan jumped to life and sprang to Serenity, gripping her tightly by the forearms.

"Ow! Tristan, stop it!" She pleaded, but he did not listen. He could not hear her. He brought her towards the throne slowly, as she was fighting every step.

Mai jumped forward in desperation, shrieking like a harpy and extending her hands toward Bakura as though to strangle him. But his hand shot upward in a quick, thrusting motion, and a Mai slammed into a forcefield that absorbed her momentum and send her spiraling away. Tristan forced Serenity to her knees before the throne; her long hair fell forward to partially cover her grimace of pain.

"Trying to fly away, my pretty little bird?" Bakura purred evilly, standing gracefully and then dropping to one knee before her. He reached out with slender fingers and twined a piece of her hair around his index finger. She looked at him in horror as he smiled and bent closer.

"Such a pretty young thing..." he murmured, stroking her face with one cold hand. She resisted the urge to gag, unable to push him away because Tristan held her arms behind her back.

"You would make a fine queen for this new kingdom." He breathed, and Serenity gasped. Bakura leaned forward and brushed his lips across hers.

She bit him.

He jerked back with a harsh cry, startled. A line of blood ran down his chin.

"Filthy wretch!" He snarled, and he leveled a heavy backhand at her that knocked her clear down the stairs of the throne and onto the floor below. She let out a low groan and lay still.

Something deep within Tristan flickered at the sight. _Serenity...?_

"Lock her away!" Bakura commanded him, wiping his torn lip to stem the flow. Tristan did not move.

"Did you _hear_ me?" He demanded, turning to him once more. Still, the torn captain did not make a move, and Bakura advanced toward him threateningly.

"Do it! You will obey me or I swear I will murder her before your very eyes!"

Bakura realized his error too late. Tristan's eyes lit from within at the terrible words.

He lashed out, a vicious left hook that caught the merciless king square on his jaw and sent him along the same flight path that Serenity had taken. He flew right over her, spinning through the air and bouncing to a rough halt a few feet away.

Tristan was down the stairs in an instant, grabbing Serenity by the forearm and gently pulling her to her feet.

"Tristan?" She asked blearily, dazed. He stroked the angry mark on her beautiful face where Bakura had struck her.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, and then he spun her about and pushed her to her fallen mother. Serenity ran to her and tried to get her off the floor, for Mai was still disoriented with her encounter with the magical wall.

Tristan spun back to the throne, and headed to the curtain that concealed the former king. The guard rushed out to meet him, but a few well-placed kicks sent him crumpling to the floor, clutching at his bruised parts. He reached out as the man was falling and yanked his sword out of its sheath.

A few quick strides brought him to the captive king, and he raised his blade for a strike. Joey did not flinch as the blade descended, preferring to meet death proudly.

But the blow was not for him, and with a sharp clang and a small jolt the chain fell free from the wall.

Tristan saluted his king respectfully and rushed off to do battle with the other guards in the room. Joey smiled and looked to his left, where all of his gear lay in a neatly stacked pile.

How convenient of Bakura, in his arrogance, to leave all of his equipment so readily available!

A moment later Joey rushed out once more to join in the battle, heading to his wife and daughter's side.

"Follow right behind me." He instructed, the urgency in his tone leaving no room for debate. "When you spot an opening, take it! Get to the stables and take the horses. Run fast and hard to the neighboring kingdom, and we will send word when the castle is again ours."

When they nodded he sped off, quickly engaging one of his former personal guards.

"Aim your blows to cripple, not to kill!" Joey shouted to his companion, and Tristan quickly reversed the killing stroke and instead performed a quick overhead chop with his weapon that knocked the man out cold. Joey too, did not aim to kill, and instead fended the guards off with the flat of his blade until an opening presented itself.

When the last guard sagged to the floor with a groan, Joey roughly pushed the others out the door.

"Stay with them." He commanded Tristan. "Make certain that they reach safety."

Tristan was clearly about to protest, but before he could say anything a beam of energy shot between them, sealing Joey into the room.

"Go!" He shouted, and then turned to face the threat.

Bakura swayed unsteadily on his feet, blood dripping from his face. But he was smiling, and he raised one shaking hand toward Joey and uttered another low curse. Yet another beam ripped through the air, and Joey dove away, narrowly missing the killing bolt by mere inches. The wall sizzled angrily where the bolt struck, melting the stone.

"Come on then!" Bakura roared, beckoning with his hand. "Come and face your death." He threw his arms up and began to chant, and a bright ball of fire began to swell between his arms.

"So be it then." Joey murmured grimly, and he launched himself into a desperate run, sword tip leading the way.

He reached the dark king just as the fireball was dropped at his feet.


	12. Discovering Inner Strength

The blast shook the castle to its very roots, throwing Yugi off of his feet to slam into the wall. Both Yami and the Dark Magician remained unaffected by the tremblings of the stone beneath their feet, and they helped Yugi again find his balance.

"What was that?" Yugi gasped.

"Bakura." The Dark Magician responded, his staff flaring briefly.

"He knows we are here. Quickly, we must get to the prayer room!"

They ran fast and hard, Yami led the way through the winding passageways with determination. As they passed one window, Yugi suddenly stopped and peered out.

"Look! It's Mai! And Serenity!" He shouted, pointing to the two figures galloping away from the castle with all speed.

"They live." Yami agreed, peering closer. "But the king is not with them."

"Let us hurry." The Magician interrupted, his eyes closed. "I sense that he draws near. We must get to our destination quickly."

"Too late!" A voice cried from behind them, and the Dark Magician whirled around. Bakura stepped from the shadows, his cloak smoldering and his face singed. He smelled of smoke and burned flesh.

Yugi stepped forward, but the Dark Magician raised an arm to block him, staring at Bakura with hatred in his eyes.

"Ah, so the little princess has returned." Bakura snarled, but his smile slowly faded as he came to realize the truth of Yugi's attire.

"You are no princess!" Bakura gasped, only now realizing his error.

"No." Yugi replied smugly. "You gave the Black King a prince, the Last Prince, the one to break the spell. You brought about your own doom by kidnapping me, and his too!"

Yugi's last bluff was severely weakened when Bakura placed a hand upon his own brow and laughed.

"No, he is not dead. Far from it in fact! He is alive, and he is angry. And once I break the seal upon his prison his thirst for vengeance will be sated."

"Never! We will stop you before you can summon him!"

Bakura's gaze snapped back, and a wicked grimace creased his face.

"Your words are beginning to become tiresome to me, young prince." He snarled. "I do believe I will enjoy the pleasure of killing you myself!"

There was only a split second in which to react. The Dark Magician slammed his staff into the ground and summoned a dome of golden light to shield them just as a score of lightning bolts shot from Bakura's fingertips.

He grit his teeth and dug in his heels, his grip on the staff tightening as he stood against blast after magical blast.

Yami grabbed Yugi's hand and tugged him along.

"We can't leave him behind!" Yugi protested, running alongside his ghostly counterpart.

"We must. He can handle himself, Yugi, and the kingdom's only hope for salvation lies with us. We _must_ complete the summoning before it's too late!"

"What summoning?" Yugi asked, but Yami ignored him, having no time to explain. They shot through the halls quickly, every now and again feeling a pulsing thud reverberate through the air as the two magic forces clashed behind them.

The battle was long and furious, as was evident from the strain on Yami's face. Finally, they reached the end of their journey. Before them stood a great set of double doors, barred with not a lock, but rather a thick and heavy iron bar. It would take a score of grown men to dislodge the thing, Yugi observed with dismay.

"There is no way we can move that." Yugi exhaled in exhaustion, trying to regain a normal breathing pattern.

"Aye, not on our own." Yami replied, stepping forward to clasp Yugi's forearm. "But I have an alternative way in. Please, put on the necklace once more."

Yugi reached into his belt pouch and again pulled forth the shining stone. With hardly a second thought, he slipped it over his head, and felt himself thrown backwards again.

Yami put his hands out in front of him, murmuring under his breath. With slow, precise movements, he placed one hand on his throat and another at the slim opening between the two doors where a slight breeze eased through.

Suddenly that gap seemed to expand, growing impossibly wide, until Yugi felt they could have stepped right into it unhindered. And they did, Yami's spell turning their corporeal form into insubstantial mist that floated through the crack. When they completed the magical travel and reached the other side of the door, the spell suddenly faltered, and so did Yami's control. Yugi blinked as he was suddenly allowed to move himself again, and his eyes widened as Yami coughed, clutching at his heart.

"The Dark Magician has been defeated." He gasped, struggling to stand. "We must be swift."

He waved his hand and lit the room with hardly a thought. It seemed empty except for the floor, which was carved into many spiraling shapes.

"Now Yugi, you must do this next part on your own. You need to call to the ancient one, you must appeal to your spirit to manifest itself." He paused to collect his breath.

"Just as the Dark Magician is a piece of my soul brought to life, so too must you call to your own soul, and bring forth the creature that dwells within."

"Nothing I call forth would be able to stand against the Black King." Yugi protested softly, honest conviction in his voice. "You are the First Prince, surely your soul is much stronger than mine. What could I possibly have within me that would help?"

Yami looked at him in sorrow, and in sincere disapointment. "You underestimate yourself." He whispered, and Yugi angrily looked away.

"No, you don't get it." He sighed through clenched teeth. "No one understands. I'm not the strong one around here, okay? I'm just the pawn, the vessel. The protected, not the protector. I cannot be of use to this battle any more than you are."

"We've already seen what I can do." Yami responded, reaching to turn Yugi to face him.

"Yugi, you must stop this. Doubt has no place in a heart such as yours. My role in this quest is to help you, I cannot defeat the evil myself. I am dead, remember?"

Yugi looked down, a hard lump in his throat.

"And even if I were not," Yami continued, catching Yugi's chin and forcing him to look him in the eyes. "My strength would still not be enough to stop this dark tide. Only you can save us Yugi, why else to you think you bear the title of the Last Prince?"

Yami stepped back and recited the prophecy.

"_One man will walk the path of neither Light nor Shadow. He will balance them both in the palm of his hand._ That is you, Yugi. You are the one that the prophecy speaks of. But you must have faith in yourself, you must trust your abilities, or else this will never work."

Yugi looked at him for a long while, seeing the strength within those soft purple eyes and wishing he could have that same inner confidence.

"I'll try." He whispered, as close to an admission of truth as Yami knew he was going to get.

"That is all I ask." He smiled softly, a look that Yugi tried to mirror as best as he could.

Yugi walked to the center of the great image and turned back.

"What do I do?"

"You must call to the realm of the spirits, and speak your name. You must tell them who you are, and give both your strengths and weaknesses freely. They will judge you according to your character, and because you are of royal blood, one shall come forth and merge with you. Then your soul companion will be yours. This normally would have been done after you had become king, but we cannot afford to wait. You need a defender, and you need it now."

He came to stand beside Yugi, just outside the circle's edge. "I will open the pathway. Be ready to present yourself..." He stopped, looking at Yugi. "And do not be afraid."

"Okay." Yugi sighed, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

He heard Yami begin the chanting behind him, felt the warmth spread up from the floor and into his body, and saw the glowing golden light shining through his eyelids. And then, everything grew steadily, softer, quieter, and darker until he could not feel anything at all. Then, a voice rumbled from the darkness, a voice that Yugi knew he was not hearing with his ears.

_Speak your name, O son of royal blood._

"I am Yugi Moto," he began, and thought it prudent to add, "the Last of the First."

The voice paused, and a wave of warmth washed over him once more.

_ Very well. State your weaknesses._

"I am weak." Yugi said, without hesitation. "I am easily frightened, and others seem to have an instinctual desire to protect me."

_You think you need to be protected?_ The voice surprised him by asking. He took a moment to respond.

"No. But that won't stop anyone. I've been surrounded by people who, for as long as I can remember, have always kept me safe. Truthfully I don't mind, but if someone were to be injured on my behalf..."

_So long as you believe that you cannot stand on your own, you will always have to rely on another. But if you look inside of yourself, and see the strength that lies within, then you will realize that you can stand alone. You can offer your strength to others, just as your companions do for you. Your friends do not protect you because they see you as weak. They guard you because they love you, they do not want to lose you. And you can extend the same feelings to them._

Yugi felt his mouth fall open at the ease with which the voice both addressed his fears and helped to dismiss them. He found himself wondering at the simplicity of the reason, yet he could not deny the logic.

The voice apparently decided that the matter was settled, for it moved on.

_Now state your strengths._

Yugi took much longer to respond this time, uncomfortable. He thought he was being prideful, arrogant even, when he began to admit what points he thought he excelled in, though all he was doing was stating truth. He tried to keep his words as humble as possible, though they bordered right on the edge of self-degrading.

"I will not back down from a fight, not matter the odds, if I am standing up for what I believe in." He began. That was a good start. Very generic, not too prideful.

"I hold great love for my friends in my heart." He continued a little softer. "They are my family, my world, and it is for them that I continue to draw breath." Yugi paused, choosing his next words carefully.

"I am a good duelist. I have fought many hard battles, but by clinging to my beliefs and my hope I have won." Okay, that was starting to sound boastful. He hesitated.

_You have stopped._ The voice said. _Yet you have much strength within you to offer. Why do you hide it away?_

"Another weakness." Yugi answered, with a self-depreciating chuckle. "I do not feel I am worthy of praise, even if it is self-induced."

_The heart that lacks confidence in itself is a broken one._

"No, I-" Yugi started to argue, but he was stopped by a wave of cool air that tasted of reproach.

_Aye. Do not twist what you know to be truth. In all of your battles, in all of your life, you have fought hard and you have fought well. No one is as deserving of praise as you are. True humility comes not from refusing this praise, but from knowing when enough is enough. So long as it does not go to your head, compliments serve to better your spirits and nourish your heart._

"But how can I know when too much is too much?" Yugi asked, confused.

_When your actions are no longer fueled by a need to protect your ideals, but by a need to hear those words of praise spoken. _It answered simply. _When you become hungry to hear the praise, when your actions are carried out simply for that moment of lifting up, then you know it has gone too far._

The silence fell and continued unbroken for many moments. Then, suddenly, Yugi smiled.

"I see." He breathed. "So you think that I can be strong and courageous, and that I can also admit to it without being prideful?"

_Yes._ The voice agreed, and Yugi sensed true contentment when he grasped at what the creature had been trying to say all along. _There is no harm in admitting your strength, just as there is no harm in admitting your short comings._

A great ripple seemed to course through the air. _I sense that you are ready, Last Prince, to fulfill the prophecy. I am your soul guardian, the companion of your spirit._

From out of the darkness an even greater blot appeared, stretching and coiling and coming closer to him. One clawed foot stepped through the shadows and landed upon the ground with a dull thud, and then it shifted to balance the weight and another foot came down. The beast's head followed soon after, its bright, golden, intelligent eyes piercing into Yugi's heart.

"No way..." Yugi breathed, unable to believe what he was seeing.

_Do you think yourself unworthy of me? _The creature asked in a low, rumbling, powerful voice.

"No." Yugi admitted honestly, his smile wide and sincere. "Not anymore. I just can't believe my eyes."

Slifer the Sky Dragon lowered his massive head and laughed.


	13. Confronting the King

Bakura slammed his attack home and watched in grim satisfaction as the Dark Magician crumpled to the floor and dissolved.

"Ever a nuisance." He spat coldly, and continued on his way. Sweat beaded on his forehead and his swift steps were weighted with fear. If the Prince reached the prayer room...

He pushed the thought away with an angry growl. He would not be denied by a mere child!

He bolted around the final corner and stopped dead in his tracks. A bright beam of gold ripped through the hall, sundering the huge doors and the bar that held them with the sheer force of it's power. Bakura threw his hands up to block the blinding light, and so he did not see what happened next.

Yugi stepped forth from the wreckage, his cloak waving behind him and a true air of nobility surrounding his form. His eyes suddenly snapped open, marvelous golden orbs that locked onto Bakura in an instant. Yugi raised his hand, and a white light engulfed them both.

"To battle!" He cried. "Let us decide the fate of this kingdom once and for all!"

And they disappeared.

When they reappeared, it was directly in front of the castle, which was still spewing tendrils of smoke in the topmost section. Yugi saw the smoke, and recalled that he had not seen his father in quite a long time. A surge of anger and sorrow rushed through him, but he stubbornly pushed it away. He refused to draw premature conclusions, refused to let anger guide his actions. That was not his way, not his heart.

He looked to Bakura, the dark king standing dazed only a few feet away.

"Surrender." Yugi bade him, and hoped that he would. He did not fear a fight, with Slifer's power pulsing through his veins and Yami at his side he felt certain that if this matter came to blows that they would win. But he did not wish to take a life, no matter how dark and twisted.

Bakura followed his same line of thinking, apparently, because he threw back his head and laughed manically.

"Never!" He practically screamed, and the sheer madness in his tone made Yugi flinch.

"You make one clever move, take a slight lead, and all of a sudden you're calling all the shots?" He asked, the derision in his tone stealing the mirth. "You presume much to think that you are more powerful than me."

"You forget the prophecy." Yugi reminded him, and Bakura scowled. "I have all that I need to destroy you, and banish your evils once and for all."

"Fool! You have the Light, but you have no Shadow! You cannot beat me with just the one!" Bakura roared, emphasizing his statement with an exclamation point in the form of a wicked bolt of black light. The energy coiled and writhed like a living thing, arcing through the air towards Yugi as fast as lighting. Yugi raised his hand, palm extended as though to catch the bolt.

It slammed into him and pushed him back, but Yugi slashed the air with his hand and the light vanished. Then it was his turn to retaliate, and he took the absorbed energy and loosed it in the form of ten heat seeking bolts that swerved unerringly towards their target.

Bakura knew he could not dodge the missiles, and so he clapped his hands and then flung them out wide, a wall of thin red haze covering him. The magic slammed into the wall one after the other, each exploding as they connected with the fiery defense.

When the smoke cleared, Bakura's wall faded.

"Well done." He congratulated sarcastically. "Using another's offense as your own. Very resourceful. But how many can you catch?"

This time it was no magical blast that came at him. Rather, Bakura threw a handful of some small objects -pebbles?- at the youth. Instead of attempting to deflect this blow, Yugi wisely dodged out of the way just as they slammed into the ground where he had been standing. A series of miniature explosions snapped at the ground and tore up chunks of the earth viciously. Yugi was thankful that they were spewing bits of dirt, and not flesh, all over!

Bakura laughed gleefully at his opponent's quick thinking. "Care to try your luck again?" He called, launching another score of little rock-like objects at him. Yugi jumped back again, keeping his eyes locked onto the things as they descended.

But when these particular rocks landed, it did not produce the same result. A blinding, searing white light tore into Yugi's eyes, making him cry out in pain and stumble away. He desperately tried to clear the spots from his eyes, knowing his devilish opponent would be on him in a mere instant, but when he managed to shake away the after affects of the light and look up, Bakura was already gone.

The clouds that rumbled with the distant roar of thunder spurred Bakura onwards. He climbed slowly, trying to get to the peak of the volcano without expanding any more of his magic than he already had. He would need all of his abilities if he expected his attempt to be successful.

The mountain shook greatly under the terrible thrashing of the beast that was trapped within. Bakura winced briefly when he remembered that _he_ was the source of the King's ire, (he was the one who sent the prince, after all, thinking that he was a princess.) But he dismissed his fears, rationalizing that the Black King would have to forgive him. The Prince had not been able to harm the mighty dragon, not without the stone. Bakura had no idea that the stone he thought his ancestor had destroyed was very much intact, and in the hands of the Last Prince to boot. Thus the Black King's predicament with him did not seem so very dire at all. They would join forces and murder that troublesome prince without another thought!

He reached the peak a moment later, raising his hands to the heavens and calling out in a powerful, commanding voice.

"With all the power of the black magic that I possess, I break the seal!"

Thunder crashed, lighting slashed open the gray sky and struck his outstretched hands. With this powerful spear of the raw elements, Bakura tore apart the black barrier that had trapped the Black King within the volcano for so many long years.

"Come forth, my King!" He roared over the thunder. "Join me and let us claim victory over this kingdom!"

The Black King, finally freed from his long confinement in the volcano, and suddenly feeling all of his powers rush back over him in one beautiful wave, had other ideas in mind. Furious with the failure of his servant, he rose from the rim of the stone and perched upon the lip easily.

Bakura realized his error as the Black King opened wide his maw and snapped his head down faster than the lightning in the sky.

"Where did he go?" Yugi cried, turning in endless circles and trying to spot the evil ruler.

"He has gone far from here." Yami answered him, in a tone that drew the blood from his face. "To the lair of the Black King."

A roar the likes of which Yugi had never heard before echoed through the sky, emphasized by a deep rumble of thunder that came closer with every passing second.

_Now is the time, Yugi._ Came a voice, confident and calm and sounding from the depths of his soul. _We must merge together to defeat this evil. Grab a firm hold of your companion, we will need his strength too._

"Yami, take my hand." Yugi said quietly, reaching to his partner. Wordlessly, he felt Yami's hand slip into his own, squeezing firmly.

_Ready?_

"Yes." Yugi breathed, and as soon as the word left his lips his eyes flared with gold once more, and he felt his spirit lifting, growing, reaching higher into the sky and becoming stronger, merging with something more...

The Black King rent the air with the furious strokes of his massive wings. He angled his great bulk and dove from the sky like a meteor, ready to tear apart the castle with his great talons. But he was stopped in his tracks as a heavy tail bashed into his head, from behind and to his side a bit.

Reeling, the Black King struggled to regain control of himself in midair, the icy rain pounding against him. He righted himself a split second before a huge red blur slammed into him a second time.

Slifer, merged with the souls of both Yugi and Yami, wrapped his long and powerful coils around the Black King and held him immobile in midair. His huge, twin mouths each sought a firm hold on the monster's neck, and began to squeeze hard.

The Black King could not move, trapped within the mighty grip of the sky dragon. But he had not survived this long by giving in. He drew in a deep breath, his lungs perverting the air so that the fire in his belly would catch onto it. He twisted his own neck around to line his jaws with Slifer's face and loosed his terrible flame.

They cried out and jerked back, each feeling the pain of the blow, merged as they were. Slifer let go of their hold for only an instant, but it was enough. The Black King managed to free both sets of claws, and he slashed at them, talons biting deep.

Their roar was of deep pain, and the Black King, advantage gained, freed his wings and climbed on top of them to pin their own down. Without the means to keep themselves aloft, they began to plummet to the earth, the combined weight increasing the speed dramatically.

The Black King let go at the last second as Slifer slammed into the earth with a shuddering boom. A cloud of dirt swirled up around the dazed dragon's form. The Black King was on them again in an instant, tearing and slashing wickedly.

Slifer snapped at his face to drive him away, long enough to get his feet back under him. He stood proudly, poised like a snake about to strike. Now it was his turn to loose his inner fire, and he began to open his second mouth, calling forth the powers within him.

The black dragon attacked again with renewed vigor, but Slifer's claws kept it back long enough to call forth his own blast of energy.

The Black King leapt into the air, thinking to outdistance the shot, but Slifer fired three orbs off in rapid succession, all of which connected unerringly upon their target. Now it was his turn to fall to the earth, Slifer's jaws once more seeking his throat.

A black haze began to draw itself over the false king's eyes. His breath was impossible to draw with the vicious dragon's jaws clamped tight over his windpipe!

_No!_ He growled inwardly, refusing to let himself die. _It cannot end like this!_

And then he spotted something, something that at once gave him hope, and gave him a measure of fear uncommon for him.

A teardrop shaped gemstone was wrapped securely around Slifer's neck, and with one mighty swipe of his claw the Black King tore it free and smashed it upon the ground.

Slifer gasped in pain and surprise, and Yami cried out in agony as his soul was violently ripped from within the mighty beast. Suddenly alone, and very vulnerable, Yami found his spirit floating inches above the ground, and inches in front of the Black King's maw.

"I never thought the day would come when we would meet again." The Black King chuckled darkly, despite his predicament. The tables had just been violently upset. "My prince."

Yugi's eyes widened, and his distraction prompted Slifer to once more loose his grip on the Black King's black scales. The dragon punched out with a heavy claw, connecting solidly on Slifer's lower jawbone. With a howl, the dragon fell back once more.

The Black King lowered his head and caught Yami's spirit between his paws. He could not flee, not without the stone.

"Do not think I have forgotten." He snarled. "I doubt that you have. After all, we shared so much more than time, you and I, trapped for so long together..."

Yugi's soft plea somehow still reached him, even though the stone was gone.

_Yami... what does he mean?_ He asked, panic in his voice.

_I'm sorry, Yugi._ Yami responded slowly, defeat heavy in his tone. _I have failed you._

And with that, the Black King sucked in a great breath, and sucked Yami's spirit up with it.

"No!" Yugi roared in Slifer's voice, the sheer volume of his protest shaking the stones around them. Slifer's heavy claws raked at the dragon's face.

_Spit him out! _Yugi demanded, though of course the dragon could not hear him.

All he received in response was a heavy headbutt to the stomach as the Black King rammed them full force.

The dragon's next cry sounded as though he was laughing.

_Your partner never told you, did he? _The Black King called, somehow managing to speak through their thoughts. _He and I were trapped in the stone for so long that our separate identities merged together and became one. I am him, and he is me. And together, we will destroy you._

He spread his wings out wide and rose into the sky, intending to flatten them both into the ground. Desperately, Yugi sought the only option left to him. He send his own call back across the link, hoping to reach the small bit that was still Yami, _his_ Yami, within the massive consciousness that was the dragon.

_Fool!_ The Black King mocked his efforts. _You cannot reach him. He is mine. _

_ No._ Yugi determined silently, pushing against the mental wall harder as the dragon gained altitude. Slifer tried to rise, but could not, the pain of his combined wounds just too much to bear any longer.

_Yami, please, if you can hear me, say something!_

A low and pain filled groan sounded from the depths of his mind. _Yugi, run, hurry..._

The Black King apparently sensed that his control was slipping, for he suddenly leveled out and began to dive for them, teeth and talons extended to finish them off.

_Slifer, I need you to help me. _Yugi begged. The dragon's reply was strained, but understandable.

_Whatever you desire of me, my master._ He breathed, exhausted.

_I need you to loose one more bolt. Put everything you have, everything I have, into one final blast. We only have one more chance._

Without question, Slifer immediately used what little air there was left in his lungs to begin gathering the last of his strength. As the beam grew between his jaws, Yugi separated himself from his companion and attached himself to the light instead.

As the Black King neared them, he opened his jaws wide once more in anticipation and let loose a chilling cry of victory.

At the last second before impact, Slifer swung his head around, firing the bolt, and Yugi, directly into the beast's waiting maw.

Within the span of an instant, the bolt had seared through the Black King cleanly, tearing right through to his heart. Yugi found Yami, fast fading, deep within the beast, and he gathered him into his arms and prepared to lift him out of this dark place. No matter what the King had said, Yugi knew that Yami in no way belonged in a foul place such as this.

The Black King stopped, mere inches away from the weak and nearly finished Slifer, halted as surely as though he had hit a brick wall. Roaring in rage and protest, he thrashed in agony as the light began to break him open from the inside out. His scales chipped and cracked, letting light spill out of them, and every time he snapped his teeth at the air, light leaked from his jaws. He twisted and jerked, screamed and slashed, but he was doomed, and he knew it.

Bright light filled their vision entirely as the embodiment of evil itself exploded in a surge of white light.

The Black King was no more.


	14. Of Dragons and Pharaohs

Yugi could not see anything. Then he realized that his eyes were closed, and he opened them slowly, as they were very heavy.

A welcome and familiar sight greeted him, that of an open window spilling moonbeams across his floor.

He was back home, in Domino.

A light weight pinned him down, and when Yugi managed to bring himself back to reality he realized that Yami had passed out on top of him.

Yami stirred and groaned, blinking in the darkness. He sat up quickly, realizing that he was crushing the youth. Yugi sat up too, and the two exchanged a long and silent look.

"Wow..." Yugi whispered, finally breaking the silence.

"Now do you understand?" Yami asked softly, his eyes shining. "What I meant about the dragons?"

Yugi frowned, thinking.

"No... " He answered, a bit confused. "Your question was to whether or not all dragons are born evil, or if they simply have no choice. But from what I've seen, the answer should be obvious..."

Yami swallowed hard and looked away, hot tears spilling down his face. "You missed the point." He whispered, his voice cracking slightly. Yugi reached to wipe the tears away, leaving his hand cupped to Yami's face.

"What point am I missing?" He asked softly, perplexed. "The Black King was evil. Slifer was not. It was all a matter of circumstance, and of choice. The Black King could have been good, if he had chosen to be. But he didn't..."

"Could he have?" Yami echoed, not looking at Yugi. "Or was he fated to be the dark and evil creature that he was? Did he honestly chose this path, or was it thrust upon him because there must be a villain in every story?"

"No, I don't think..." Yugi began, then he stopped, a new thought coming to him.

"This isn't about the dragons... is it." He whispered, and Yami's wince showed him that his guess was on the mark.

"No." He admitted slowly, softly. "No, it's not."

Yugi tried again. "Well, if it had been _you_ out there..."

"It _was_ me, Yugi." Yami finally admitted, turning to face him as more tears spilled across his cheeks. "_I_ was the Black King."

"What?" Yugi breathed, not understanding.

"I was the Black King." Yami repeated bitterly. "That great and all consuming darkness was born from _my_ soul. I found out when..." he stopped, intending to use a real life example but switching instead to one from the story in order to leave old wounds untouched.

"When I was trapped in the stone with the Black King for so many long years, he and I gradually lost sight of who we were. Of where I ended and he began. We became as one, he and I. And we never really separated again. I was lost to the darkness. I had no choice."

"But you weren't!" Yugi argued. "That was you inside of the stone, separate from the Black King."

"Yes, that was me too. A small part of me, the untainted part that was all that was left of what I once had been. And look how much good came from that." He muttered sarcastically. "The 'good' part of me was weak, frail. He could not help you, and in the end he even aided your enemy. How is that any different with me? I... I..." He stopped, fighting to hold back the tears that were steadily spilling from his eyes. Yugi's own eyes began to swim with shared pain, and he reached across the bed and drew Yami in for a desperate embrace.

For the first time in his life, Yami did not have any more strength to fight the inner doubts and the fears that had plagued him for so long. For the first time, he let himself cry, and he did not care that Yugi was watching. He did not want to have to be the strong one all of the time.

Yugi rocked him softly back and forth, his arms around his shoulders as he cried. His head was spinning from all he had heard. Yami, evil? There was no way. He had trouble even following that line of logic, it just did not make any sense.

_Well, it makes sense to him, somehow._ Yugi thought to himself as Yami choked his way past another sob. He was so unused to lowering the barriers around his soul, this must be just as painful to him as his supposed corruption by the darkness, if not more.

But Yugi knew it was necessary, a needed pain in the healing process.

The minutes slipped by slowly, and Yami eventually ran out of tears to cry. He reduced himself to small, quivering breaths every few minutes. The front of Yugi's shirt was soaked through.

"Yami?" Yugi asked softly, but he did not respond. He tried again, more firmly this time, and he received a small sort of grunt to indicate that he was listening.

"Yami, listen to me." Yugi commanded, and Yami reluctantly raised his teary eyes to meet his partner's own warm gaze.

"It was not your fault." He said simply. "None of it is. Nothing that has happened to me has ever been your fault." He stopped and tried to smile. "Whether in the story or not."

"Yes it has." Yami argued softly, sounding so tired. "Duelist Kingdom was my fault. If it was not for the Millennium Items you would never have had to go through that."

"If not me, than someone else." Yugi answered him, without missing a beat. This time he did smile, looking Yami right in the eyes.

"I would rather bear the burden then give it to someone less prepared. And really, who was better prepared to handle that then us?"

"Battle City then." Yami pressed, refusing to give ground. "Marik was only in it because he wanted me, and wanted to hurt those close to me."

"That's not true. He was also a Rare Hunter, remember? The promise of the Items was great, but if he had never known about the Puzzle's whereabouts he still would have wreaked havoc with his underground black market."

"But it was because of his lust for the power of the items that his darker side was born." Yami sighed.

"True." Yugi conceded, but his tone gave Yami the distinct impression that that one minor fact held little weight in his eyes.

"But you cannot be held responsible for the desires of another man's heart. We paid the price for _his_ actions, not yours." Yugi asserted firmly, tired of Yami's unending stream of self-pity. He needed to snap out of this!

Yami opened his mouth once more. "But what of-" He was stopped when Yugi covered his mouth with his hand.

"Don't even _think_ about bringing that up." Yugi said, his voice firm and his stance uncompromising. "You and I both know that what happened there was a mistake, and that the incident is, or should be, fully behind us."

Yami stopped, deflated. He could find no more arguments to stack against Yugi's unending stream of reassurances. Silently, his eyes still shining, he held out his arms. Yugi released his mouth and hugged him again, as tightly as he could.

After a long, long moment, (during which Yugi could feel Yami's shoulders ease from their tense posture,) Yami spoke.

"Why must you always be so optimistic when all I want is to wallow in my own guilt?" Yami asked sarcastically. Yugi smiled.

"I guess that's just who I am. I have to make you see how much of an idiot you sound like when you start blaming yourself like that."

"Ouch." Yami winced, drawing back. "I guess I deserved that."

"Darn right." Yugi chuckled. "And if you ever do that again I'll surely do worse!"

They both laughed, caught up in the seriousness of Yugi's joking tone.

"Seriously Yami, you ever start thinking like that, you've got to tell me." Yugi pleaded, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Otherwise the feelings will just fester within you until you completely give in to them. And then we'll have to do this all over again!"

Yami smiled a little wistfully.

"I know." He sighed. "Believe me, I know. I was never very good at opening up and sharing feelings though. Why do you think I went to all the trouble of the dream instead of just telling you what was on my mind?"

"Well, I've got to admit, the dream was pretty awesome." Yugi looked out his window as a thought suddenly crossed his mind.

"I didn't know you could do that." He tilted his head a bit to the side, thinking about something.

"Hey... that dream I had last week, the one about 'kidnapping' Mokuba for the day... that wasn't you, was it?"

Yami tried to hold his poker face, but the corners of his lips trembled ever so slightly.

"I knew it!" Yugi crowed, pushing Yami over. "And here I thought I ate something funny before bed. What did you want, to see Kaiba in a raging fit without actually having to get near him?"

"Something like that." Yami smirked. "I was testing to see if it actually worked. I whispered that you had invited Mokuba over for the day and ticked Kaiba off in your ear when you were sleeping." Yami grinned. "And you smiled, too."

Yugi pulled a face. "That's creepy, that you can influence dreams like that."

"Sometimes I can't." Yami shrugged, righting himself. "I think I can only show you what you want to see. Except for tonight, but that was because I used a little extra magic to make the dream more real. I've been nice to Kaiba though, I keep giving him dreams that he beats me in Duel Monsters when I'm bored."

"Yami..." Yugi sighed, hopelessly shaking his head. "You love to torture him, don't you?"

"Not really." Yami defended himself. "I just like to fluff up his ego and marvel at how he can still fit his head through the door."

Yami snorted, and Yugi couldn't help but share in the mirth. They fell silent then, thinking about the night's events and what they had learned. Yami fell silent and pensive once more, and Yugi patted him on the shoulder to give him some added strength.

"Just remember. Everyone is given a choice. Good or bad, righteous or evil. It's up to you, it's up to me, it's up to all of us. We cannot have our paths chosen for us."

Yami squared his shoulders a bit, taking a deep breath and staring straight ahead. "Right." He said firmly.

Yugi was happy that Yami had been able to realize what a foolish notion he had been entertaining all this time. But he couldn't resist adding, just to see how convinced Yami actually was: "But if we weren't allowed to choose our destinies, I have to admit you'd make one heck of a villain."

Yami laughed, a true, honest, and self-forgiving laugh. A wicked gleam leapt into his eyes.

"Oh I would, would I?" He growled mockingly, and Yugi suddenly realized that he need not have bothered pressing the notion. Yami was definitely back to his old self, and all Yugi had done was set himself up for a fall with that little verbal jab.

And fall he did, right back into his pillows as Yami practically pounced on him and started to tickle his sides.

"I _have_ been practicing my torturing techniques." He smirked over Yugi's gasps of laughter. "And I know all of your weak spots too."

He grinned a positively evil grin as he reached to one of said 'weak spots', half-turning in his seat to grab at Yugi's toes.

Yugi snorted in barely suppressed laughter as he tried to keep his feet out of Yami's reach. But with Yami sitting on his knees there wasn't much he could do in the way of evasive maneuvering. He opted instead to use the distraction to sit up and tickle Yami's sides instead.

"Hey!" Yami gasped, falling backwards in surprise. It really wasn't fair, but Yami was twice as ticklish as Yugi was, the only problem was that it was so hard to get close enough to tickle him!

They collapsed side by side on the bed, laughing and gasping for breath. Soon enough they calmed, and soon after a chorus of yawns ensued.

"I don't even want to know what time it is." Yugi mumbled, reaching down to pull the blanket over them.

"Oh well, it's the weekend anyway, we can sleep in." Yami sighed contentedly, pulling the covers up to his chin and fluffing his pillow.

Yugi gave a murmur of agreement, settling in and yawning again. Then, on a whim, he turned and gave Yami one last hug.

"Goodnight, my dragon." He sighed, his head on Yami's shoulder. Yami paused for a moment, surprised, before he gently wrapped his arms around his brother and hugged him in return.

"Good night... my little prince."

**A.N. So, was there a point to all of this?**

**You tell me. :)**

**Good night!**


End file.
